Can Strep Cause An Ear Infection

Chronic Suppurative Otitis Media

The cause of frequent throat and ear infections

In some severe cases after eardrum rupture, perforation may lead to ongoing discharge, which is pus-like. This drainage is often called otorrhea. When this happens, the bacteria involved are most commonly P. aeruginosa or S. aureus. This infection may also spread into the mastoid bone and usually requires injectable antibiotic treatment and sometimes surgery.

Causes And Risk Factors Of Strep Throat

According to the Mayo Clinic, anyone can get strep throat. But youre more likely to become sick if:

Youre between 5 and 15 years old
Its winter or early spring, when large groups of people tend to crowd together in enclosed environments, spreading bacteria

Since strep throat is contagious, youre much more likely to catch it if youre in close contact with someone who is infected, notes the CDC.

According to Nipunie S. Rajapakse, MD, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at the Mayo Clinic, strep infections commonly spread in households with more than one child, as well as in schools and child care centers.

Within a household, you may be sharing utensils or drinks, Dr. Rajapakse notes. Its not uncommon that well see two kids from the same family with similar symptoms at the same time.

While its rare for adults to catch strep throat, its not impossible especially if they work in a school or child care setting.

We do know that adults that work closely with kids tend to be exposed and get infected more commonly than the general population, Rajapakse notes.

How Is A Middle

Your health care provider will take a medical history and do a physicalexam. He or she will look at the outer ear and eardrum with an otoscope.The otoscope is a lighted tool that lets your provider see inside the ear.A pneumatic otoscope blows a puff of air into the ear to check how wellyour eardrum moves. If you eardrum doesnt move well, it may mean you havefluid behind it.

Your provider may also do a test called tympanometry. This test tells howwell the middle ear is working. It can find any changes in pressure in themiddle ear. Your provider may test your hearing with a tuning fork.

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Can An Ear Infection Cause A Sore Throat

Ear infections can be a real pain, both literally and figuratively. Not only can they make it difficult to hear, but they can also cause other issues like sore throats. Its essential to know the symptoms of an ear infection so that you can get treatment as soon as possible. In this blog post, we will find the answer to the question, Can an Ear infection cause sore throat?. We will also discuss whether you have an ear infection and what treatment options are available.

Antibiotics Get You Well Fast

Doctors treat strep throat with antibiotics. Either penicillin or amoxicillin are recommended as a first choice for people who are not allergic to penicillin. Doctors can use other antibiotics to treat strep throat in people who are allergic to penicillin.

Benefits of antibiotics include:

Preventing the bacteria from spreading to others
Preventing serious complications like rheumatic fever

Someone who tests positive for strep throat but has no symptoms usually does not need antibiotics. They are less likely to spread the bacteria to others and very unlikely to get complications. If a carrier gets a sore throat illness caused by a virus, the rapid strep test can be positive. In these cases it can be hard to know what is causing the sore throat. If someone keeps getting a sore throat after taking the right antibiotics, they may be a strep carrier and have a viral throat infection. Talk to a doctor if you think you or your child may be a strep carrier.

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Tell Me The Cause Of Ear Pain

The most common cause of ear pain is an ear infection. Ear infections can be caused by several different things, including bacteria, viruses, allergies, and even a swimmers ear.

Ear infections can be pretty painful and can often lead to other problems like sore throats. If you think you have an ear infection, you must see a doctor and get treatment as soon as possible.

Tooth Infection Or Abscess

A dental abscess is a pocket of pus at the tip of your tooths root caused by a bacterial infection. An abscessed tooth can cause severe pain that radiates to your ear and jaw on the same side. The lymph nodes in your neck and throat may also be swollen and tender.

Other symptoms include:

sensitivity to heat and cold
pain when chewing and swallowing
swelling in your cheek or face

Common Ear Nose And Throat Infections

When we talk about ear, nose and throat infections, we often do it in terms of the location of the problem rather than the specific viral or bacterial infection that is causing the problem. This is because infections in different areas tend to produce different symptoms. We can tell where the infection is based on these symptoms.

Ear infections can be outer, middle or inner ear infections. Inner ear infections are less common as it is harder for viruses and bacteria to reach this part of the ear.
Nasal infections often affect the nasal passages , but they can also affect connected areas like the sinuses .
Throat infections can be named according to their location, for example tonsillitis in the tonsils or laryngitis in the larynx .

Sometimes the location of the infection is all we need to know in order to manage the symptoms. However, in some cases it may be possible to identify the specific infection that is responsible. Its particularly important to do this when the symptoms are severe, theres a chance that the infection could be bacterial, or other parts of your body are affected too.

Lots of different infections can affect your ears, nose, or throat:

Any part of the ears, nose and throat can be affected by many of the same viruses and bacteria. However, certain types of infection are more likely to happen in different areas and the symptoms can also be a little bit different, depending on exactly where the infection is located.

Other Types Of Ear Infections

Can strep throat cause permanent hearing damage? – Dr. Harihara Murthy

Swimmer’s Ear

Acute otitis externa is an inflammation or infection of the outer ear and ear canal. It can be triggered by water that gets trapped in the ear. The trapped water can cause bacteria and fungi to breed. Otitis externa can also be precipitated by overly aggressively scratching or cleaning of ears or when an object gets stuck in the ears.

Otitis externa is generally treated with topical antibiotics, which will cure the infection and help relieve pain. With eardrops, most cases will clear up within 2 to 3 days. If the condition persists, the doctor will need to evaluate and rule out other possible causes.

Minor Strep A Infections

Throat infections

Throat infections are spread in much the same way as a cold or the flu. If an infected person coughs or sneezes, tiny droplets of fluid that contain the bacteria are launched into the air. If you breathe these in, you may become infected.

Read more about the causes of throat infection.

Impetigo

An impetigo infection can occur when the bacteria invade otherwise healthy skin through a cut, insect bite or other injury.

An infection can also occur when the bacteria invade the skin as a result of the skin barrier being disrupted by another underlying skin condition, such as head lice, scabies or eczema.

Home Remedies For Strep Throat Symptoms

In addition to antibiotics, at-home treatments can help relieve the symptoms of strep throat. These remedies include:

getting plenty of rest

But the authors of the review caution that theyre much less effective than antibiotics. In addition, the antimicrobial activity in each is limited and short-lived, which means the type of formulation is important.

A 2017 study also found antibacterial features in a specific blend of cinnamon, wild carrot, eucalyptus, and rosemary essential oils.

Ingesting essential oils isnt recommended. They can be inhaled or diluted with oil and added to a bath. Some remedies, like ginger root or lemon juice, may be added to tea.Explore more about using these essential oils to treat a sore throat.

Foods often used to ease symptoms of a sore throat, but whose effectiveness specifically to treat strep throat is uncertain, include:

In order to prevent complications, its recommended that you talk with your doctor if you have symptoms of strep throat.

Read Also: What Is Chronic Hiv Infection

Why Does September Feel So Melancholy

Today, I sat in my fishing buddy’s small rowboat, drifting on the surface of the Walkill River, leaned back, and felt so content I nearly fell asleep. I opened my eyes, in awe of a gorgeous cotton candy-colored sky moving along like a painting. One tiny little detail I noticed: the sun was beginning to set.

No, literally. It’s been setting earlier. I wasn’t being overdramatic, y’all know me. I’m only like that when I’m very serious.

Why does the end of summer come with an underlying sadness? I mean, who doesn’t love fall? Warm leaves! Gentle winds! Ideal temperatures for enjoying anything outside! And the promise of change – it’s hard not to be romantic about the upcoming season. Hell, it’s my favorite one of ’em all.

Is it because here, we’re reminded that things do end, from nature herself? The sun sets, leaves die, the days grow short, and the world grows colder. Is there any more of a bitter reminder than that of our environment? Sure, it’s cyclical, but cycles do include endings no matter what. Look at a tree as it sheds its leaves and becomes nothing but a structure of bark and empty branches. If you listen quietly on a crisp autumn night, you can almost hear the world whisper “See you soon.” Or have I been drinking too many hard ciders? Everything pops to vibrant life in summer, it seems. Just the word itself suggests endless fun.

What Are The Complications

Sore Throat Causes Ear Infection Cold Remedies Cough Throat Sore ...

The most serious complications secondary to ear infections are mastoiditis and meningitis . Both are extremely rare.

Chronic draining ears and chronic perforations are uncommon, but occur more frequently as a result of resistant pneumococcus. However, these complications are commonly seen in developing countries where antibiotics are not readily available. Permanent hearing loss from very severe recurrent infections is a major concern, but is still rarely observed with effective antibiotic therapy. Children with an ear infection suffer only some temporary, low grade hearing loss. As the fluid resolves, which may take months, the hearing returns to baseline levels.

Your child’s doctor may work with an ear-nose-and-throat doctor to help treat the more severely afflicted child, or one who has suspected chronic hearing loss. Children with chronic fluid persisting for more than four months, or with more than five or six ear infections in a year, may require the insertion of “tubes.” This is most important during the first two years of life when hearing is critical for speech and language development. Chronic ear infections may aggravate learning and later school problems, but cause and effect on this issue remains speculative.

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Strep Throat Treatments And Home Care

Medications

Your doctor will prescribe antibiotics to kill the bacteria that cause the infection. Most treatments last for about 10 days. The medicine can make your childs symptoms go away faster and help prevent complications.

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Make sure your child takes all of the doses. Stopping the medicine too early can leave some bacteria alive. These can make your child sick again. Be sure to tell the doctor if your young one is allergic to any types of antibiotics.

If the strep test is negative, a virus likely caused the sore throat. Your child doesnt need antibiotics because these medications dont work on viruses.

You can also take medications to ease the pain of strep throat and lower fever including over-the-counter medications such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen. Dont give aspirin to children or teens. It can cause a rare but dangerous condition called Reyes syndrome.

Home care

There are a number of things you can do at home to lessen pain and make you feel more comfortable:

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Gargle with a mixture of a quarter-teaspoon of salt and 8 ounces of warm water.

Suck on a throat lozenge or piece of hard candy. Dont give small pieces of candy to children younger than 4.

Throw out your toothbrush and use a new one.

Drink warm liquids such as tea and broth and drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration

Suck on something cold such as an ice pop or ice chips.

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Tell Me The Best Way To Treat Earaches And Sore Throat

If you have an earache and throat infection, you must see a doctor and get treatment as soon as possible. You can often get rid of the infection and feel better quickly with the proper treatment. Thanks for reading! We hope this blog post helped answer your questions about ear infections and sore throats. If you have any other questions or would like to schedule an appointment with one of our ENT specialists, dont hesitate to contact us today.

Get Help From An Online Doctor

Online doctors are a valuable resource for discussing a sore throat or ear infection. Furthermore, all doctors you can meet with in virtual doctor apps, such as DrHouse, are board-certified and can write prescriptions, including antibiotics. When using DrHouse, you can meet with a doctor in as little as 15 minutes, allowing you to get the advice you need to feel better faster.

How To Know If You Have An Ear Infection

Strep Infections: The Causes, Symptoms, and Diagnosis | Merck Manual Consumer Version Quick Facts

An ear infection can occur out of nowhere, with no underlying cause, and is typically very painful.

Its common for an ear infection to be accompanied by a cold, the flu, allergy flare-ups or a sinus infection.

If youve developed an ear infection, you may also experience pain in the ear, fluid in the ear, swelling and the feeling that there is pressure in your ear.

Other common symptoms of an ear infection for adults include pain in the ear, difficulty hearing, drainage of fluid from the ear and a low-grade fever.

Most ear infections are a result of bacterial or viral infections in the middle ear, which are more likely to occur in children than adults.

In fact, around half of all infants will deal with a middle ear infection before they turn one year old.

Childrens symptoms will also differ from those of an adult, with a middle ear infection causing loss of appetite, loss of balance, a decrease in sleep, headaches, irritability and crying, a fever, ear pain, drainage of fluid from the ear and tugging at the ear thats infected.

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Alternative And Complementary Therapies For Tonsillitis

No supplements treat tonsillitis, although there is a lozenge that contains the probiotic BLIS K12 , that may help reduce the chance of getting tonsillitis, says Tod Cooperman, MD, the president of ConsumerLab.com, an independent organization that reviews supplements and other types of products that impact consumer health, wellness, or nutrition. Research, however, suggests the probiotic may not yet have enough evidence for how and when it should be used.

A 2019 review published in Clinical Microbiology and Infection concluded that K12 was safe and well-tolerated and may potentially be beneficial in protecting children from throat infection. According to the authors, further randomized controlled studies are needed to establish whether K12 could be an alternative to antibiotics, as it is not likely to be effective if given along with antibiotics or if the probiotic could be used as a preventive treatment for people who get frequent bouts of tonsillitis.

Always talk with your doctor before trying a supplement because it may interact with other medications you are taking or have other side effects you should know about.

Recommended Reading: Sinus Infection Post Nasal Drip

When To See A Doctor

It is important to see a doctor if you experience strep throat complications. You should go talk to your doctor or take your child to a doctor if you notice the following signs and symptoms:

A sore throat with swollen lymph nodes
A sore throat that does not improve in 48 hours
A fever higher than 101F with no improvement in 48 hours
A sore throat with a red rash
Difficulty swallowing or problems breathing
No improvement for 24-48 hours after taking antibiotics for strep

You should also talk to your doctor if you or your child has a fever with swelling in the joints. Shortness of breath should not be ignored either. If a strep infection lasts longer than three weeks, it may indicate rheumatic fever.

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Sore Throats And Ear Infections In Children

Experts say that the anatomy and physiology of young childrens ears make them vulnerable to infection. The ear has three parts: the inner ear, the outer ear, and the middle ear. For infants and toddlers, the tube that leads from the nose to the middle ear, the Eustachian Tube, is different compared to an older child or an adult. This tube is horizontal, wider, and shorter in children. The shape of the Eustachian Tube in children makes it easier for germs to travel into the middle ear. When the tube is blocked, as is typical from the congestion of a cold or flu, the fluid that normally drains from the middle ear cannot exit. Bacteria or a virus can incubate in this build up, ultimately leading to an ear infection. The fluid that pushes on the eardrum is what causes ear pain. The younger a child is when he had his first ear infection, the more likely he will have repeated infections in the future. In general, more boys get ear infections than girls do.

Here are some symptoms to watch for in your children regarding sore throats and ear infections:

Pain and tugging on the ears.
Head shaking, especially when coupled with a fever.
Problems sleeping .
In addition, since sucking and swallowing are painful when a sore throat is present, your child may have trouble eating.
In infants, sometimes irritability may be the only clue. Frequent crying and nasal discharge are also clues to look for when trying to diagnose a sore throat or ear infection in babies.