Is this your symptom?
- Pain in or around the ear
- Not caused by an ear injury
Causes of Earaches
- Ear Infection. An infection of the middle ear is the most common cause of earache. Can happen at any age, but more common in kids. Bacterial ear infections need antibiotics. Viral ear infections get better on their own. Both need pain medicine.
- Infection in the Ear Canal can cause pain and leak fluid from the ear. Common in people with small or blocked ear canals. Also common in people who wear hearing aids. Can be treated with medicine and ear cleaning by a health provider.
- Swimmer's Ear is an infection or raw feeling of the ear canal lining. It often happens to swimmers in the summer. Main symptom is an itchy ear canal. Can hurt if the ear canal gets infected. May happen over and over again.
- Shingles can cause pain in the face and/or ear. It may feel like ear pain before the rash appears.
- Mastoiditis is an infection of the mastoid bone that connects the part of the skull behind the ear to the middle part of the ear.
- Ear Canal Injury. A cotton swab or fingernail can scratch the ear canal and cause infection and pain.
- Pus Pocket in Ear Canal. A painful infection of a hair follicle in the ear canal. It looks like a small red bump. Sometimes turns into a pimple and needs to be drained.
- Earwax. A piece of hard earwax can cause mild ear pain. If the wax has been pushed in by a cotton swab, the ear canal can become blocked. This pain will be worse.
- Ear Canal Object. Objects put in the ear canal will hurt if they are sharp or left in for a long time. Bugs can also crawl into the ear and cause ear pain.
- Airplane Ear. Quick changes in air pressure can cause ear pain. Often starts when coming down for a landing or taking off. Can also happen during mountain driving.
- Pierced Ear Infections are very common and should be treated right away. Symptoms are redness, pain and swelling of the outside part of the ear.
- Referred Pain. Ear pain can be referred from problems that are not in the ear. Tonsil infections, tooth problems and mumps can cause ear pain. Jaw pain (TMJ) can also be felt as ear pain.
When to Call for Earache
Call Doctor or Seek Care Now
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Contact Doctor Within 24 Hours
Contact Doctor During Office Hours
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Self Care at Home
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Call Doctor or Seek Care Now
- Severe earache
- Pink or red swelling behind the ear
- Stiff neck (can't move neck normally)
- Walking is not steady
- Pointed object was put into the ear canal (such as a pencil, stick, or wire)
- Fever or chills; feeling hot or shivery
- You feel weak or very sick
- You think you need to be seen, and the problem is urgent
Contact Doctor Within 24 Hours
- Outer ear is red, swollen and painful
- Weak immune system. Examples are: diabetes, sickle cell disease, HIV, cancer, organ transplant, taking oral steroids.
- Blood, pus or cloudy discharge from ear canal
- Earache, but none of the symptoms above. Reason: could be an ear infection.
- You think you need to be seen, but the problem is not urgent
Contact Doctor During Office Hours
- You have other questions or concerns
Self Care at Home
- Mild earache that started after or during a flight
- Mild earache with a cold (gets better with over-the-counter pain meds)
Care Advice for Stomach Pain
What You Should Know About Stomach Pain:
- Mild stomach pain can be caused by something simple. It could be from gas pains or eating too much.
- Sometimes, stomach pain signals the start of a viral infection. This will lead to vomiting or loose stools.
- Watching your child for 2 hours will help tell you the cause.
- Here is some care advice that should help.
Lie Down:
- Have your child lie down and rest until feeling better.
Clear Fluids:
- Offer clear fluids only (such as water, flat soft drinks or half-strength Gatorade).
- For mild pain, offer a regular diet.
Prepare for Vomiting:
- Keep a vomiting pan handy.
- Younger children often talk about stomach pain when they have nausea. Nausea is the sick stomach feeling that comes before they throw up.
Pass a Stool:
- Have your child sit on the toilet and try to pass a stool.
- This may help if the pain is from constipation or diarrhea.
- Note: for constipation, moving a warm wet cotton ball on the anus may help.
Do Not Give Medicines:
- Any drug (like ibuprofen) could upset the stomach and make the pain worse.
- Do not give any pain medicines or laxatives for stomach cramps.
- For fever higher than 102° F (39° C), acetaminophen (such as Tylenol) can be given.
What to Expect:
- With harmless causes, the pain is most often better or gone in 2 hours.
- With stomach flu, belly cramps may happen before each bout of vomiting or diarrhea. These cramps may come and go for a few days.
- With serious causes (such as appendicitis), the pain worsens and becomes constant.
Call Your Doctor If:
- Pain becomes severe
- Constant pain lasts more than 2 hours
- Mild pain that comes and goes lasts more than 24 hours
- You think your child needs to be seen
- Your child becomes worse
Extra Help - Worried Stomach:
- Help your child talk about events that trigger the stomach pain. Talk to your child about how to cope with these the next time around.
- Help your child worry less about things she can't control.
- To treat the pain, help your child get very relaxed. Lying down in a quiet place and taking slow deep breaths may help. Make the belly go up and down with each breath. Then try to relax all the muscles in the body. Think about something pleasant. Listening to audios that teach how to relax might also help.
- Make sure your child gets enough sleep.
- Make sure that your child doesn't miss any school because of stomach pains. Stressed children tend to want to stay home when the going gets rough.
- Caution: your child should see her doctor for an exam. Do this before concluding frequent stomach pains are from worrying too much.
