How to prevent otitis media?

Obviously, people first want to differentiate between otitis media (infection in the middle ear), and otitis externa (infection in the outer ear, such as swimmer's ear).

There are risk factors involved with otitis media (such as second hand smoke, day care attendance), but otitis media is only really a problem if it becomes chronic or recurrent - indicating drainage issues in the Eustachian tubes, enlarged or infected adenoids, or such.

But the occasional episode of otitis media is not really a matter of significant concern.

KidsHealth.org has an excellent writeup on otitis media that parents (and, apparently, some RNs) should read.
http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/...

alot of people prevent otitis media by not going swimming or swimming in any other bodies of water. bodies of water such as pools, lakes, rivers etc contain alot of bacteria, which can enter the ear when putting your head underwater and infect them. people may go swimming but just not put their hear underwater also. make sure your ears stay clean as well.

Otitis Media is usually caused by water getting in the ears and sitting there, allowing bacteria to grow.

I recommend (and this may sound funny) blow drying your ears dry after showering.

Learned it in nursing school.

People also commonly get ear infections with head colds or even allergies! Some people are more prone than others. I was horribly prone to ear infections when I was young. I wore earplugs in the water when I swam to keep the water out, and had ear "tubes" (I think that's what they're called) surgically inserted when I was 2 (of course, that was like 1980, maybe they do things differently now). Even with all that, I would still occasionally get an ear infection, but much less often. I now have not had an ear infection for years, so obviously my Doctors did something right!Talk to your Dr. about options you can do to prevent ear infections (and remember, they aren't contagious - just painful!)

with an infant the most important thing is to keep second hand smoke away from your baby. with adults it is like preventing a cold

HI :) Below is some information on what causes Otitis Media. Keeping away from these things will help prevent ear infections. Best of luck and i hope all is well. :)


What Increases Your Risk
Some factors that increase the risk for middle ear infection (otitis media) are out of your control. These include:

Age. Children age 3 years and younger are most likely to get ear infections. Also, young children get more colds and upper respiratory infections. Most children have at least one ear infection before they are 7 years old.
Birth defects or other medical conditions. Babies with cleft palate or Down syndrome are prone to ear infections.
Weakened immune system. Children with severely impaired immune systems have more ear infections than healthy children.
Sex. Boys seem to have more ear infections than girls.
Family history. Children are more likely to have repeat middle ear infections if a parent or sibling had repeat ear infections.
Allergies. Allergies may be a risk factor for ear infections. Allergies cause long-term stuffiness in the nose that can affect how the eustachian tube works. Blocking this tube, which leads from the nose to the throat, can cause fluid to build up in the middle ear.
Other factors that increase the risk for otitis media include:

Repeat colds and upper respiratory infections. Most ear infections develop from colds or other upper respiratory infections.
Exposure to cigarette smoke. Babies who are around cigarette smoke are more likely to have ear infections than babies who are not. Also, ear infections seem to last longer in children who are near cigarette smoke. 8
Bottle-feeding. Babies who are bottle-fed are more likely to develop ear infections within the first year of life than are babies who are breast-fed. Also, bottle-fed babies are more likely to develop ear infections if they drink their bottles lying down rather than being held in an upright position. 8
Child care centers. Children who are around many other children, such as in child care centers, are more likely to have ear infections than children who are not exposed to many other children. 1
Pacifier use. Babies who continue to use a pacifier are more likely to develop ear infections. 1
Factors that increase the risk for repeated ear infections also include:

Ear infections at an early age. Babies who have their first ear infection before 6 months of age are more likely to have other ear infections.
Persistent fluid in the ear. Fluid behind the eardrum that lasts longer than 2 to 10 weeks after an ear infection increases the risk for repeated infection.
Prior infections. Children who had an ear infection within the previous 3 months are more likely to have another ear infection, especially if the infection was treated with antibiotics.