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Read articleChronic otitis media is long-standing infection of the middle ear with a perforated eardrum and recurrent discharge. Families often treat it as an ordinary running ear for years, by which time hearing has been affected and, in some forms, the surrounding bone is at risk.
Symptoms
Not everyone gets every symptom, and the pattern can differ in older people, in people with diabetes and in children. These are the ones most often reported.
- Ear discharge, recurring or continuous, sometimes foul-smelling
- Reduced hearing on the affected side
- Ringing or buzzing in the ear
- Ear discharge that worsens after bathing, swimming or a cold
- Mild ear ache or a blocked sensation
- Giddiness in advanced disease
When to see a doctor
Do not wait these out
If any of the following applies, arrange to be seen the same day. For anything sudden or severe, call 9281862028 or come straight to the emergency department at SIMS — it is open 24 hours and does not need an appointment.
- Any ear discharge lasting more than two weeks
- Ear discharge with fever, severe headache, facial weakness or giddiness — attend the same day
- Progressive hearing loss, especially in a school-going child
- Foul-smelling discharge, which suggests a more destructive form of disease
Tests that may be advised
Your consultant will order only the investigations that change the plan. Most of the following are available on the SIMS campus, so results usually come back the same visit.
- Ear examination with an otoscope and operating microscope
- Audiometry to measure the type and degree of hearing loss
- Ear swab for culture where discharge is persistent
- CT scan of the temporal bone for suspected cholesteatoma or complications
- Tympanometry in selected patients
How it is treated
Treatment is decided case by case — by how advanced the problem is, what else you are being treated for, and what you can realistically sustain. Broadly, it involves the following.
- Keeping the ear strictly dry — no oil, no unprescribed drops, no water entry while bathing
- Aural toilet and topical treatment under medical supervision
- Antibiotics for active infection
- Tympanoplasty to repair the eardrum and improve hearing once the ear is dry
- Mastoid surgery for cholesteatoma or complications
- Hearing assessment and support for children so that speech and schooling are not affected
This page is general information, not a diagnosis
Chronic Otitis Media can look like several other conditions, and the reverse is equally true. Nothing here can replace an examination, your test results and the judgement of the doctor treating you — and no medicine mentioned by name to a friend or relative should be started on the strength of this page. If you recognise yourself in it, book a consultation with the ENT department. If a symptom is sudden or severe, call 9281862028.
