{"id":3327,"date":"2023-04-15T12:43:00","date_gmt":"2023-04-15T16:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/?p=3327"},"modified":"2023-04-17T13:06:34","modified_gmt":"2023-04-17T17:06:34","slug":"is-my-earache-caused-by-a-cold-or-ear-infection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/is-my-earache-caused-by-a-cold-or-ear-infection\/","title":{"rendered":"Is My Earache Caused by a Cold or Ear Infection?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>If you\u2019re experiencing an <a href=\"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/ent\/earache\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">earache<\/a>, it\u2019s important to get to the bottom of what\u2019s causing it in order to seek the appropriate treatment. Two potential causes of an earache are the common cold and an ear infection. We review how to tell the difference between these conditions below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2>The Common Cold<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>According to one 2020 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/books\/NBK279543\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">article<\/a> published in the National Library of Medicine, \u201cColds are very common, especially in children. It&#8217;s quite normal for children to catch 6 to 10 colds per year \u2013 at school, daycare or kindergarten. Adults have 2 to 4 colds a year on average, mostly during the colder time of year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Colds can cause ear pain because the eardrum becomes inflamed when you\u2019re sick. This can cause a dull, sharp or burning earache.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Other symptoms you\u2019ll experience with a cold include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/ent\/congestion-stuffy-nose\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Congestion<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Runny nose<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sneezing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Coughing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sore throat<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Fatigue<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Headache<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Joint pain<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Mild fever<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>To clear an earache caused by a cold, you essentially need to take a wait-and-see approach. Once you clear the illness, your earache should go away. Getting lots of rest and staying hydrated can help you get over your sickness faster. You can also take over-the-counter cold medications from 3 Rivers Pharmacy on Anthony Boulevard to help manage symptoms in the meantime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2>Ear Infection<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>An ear infection, referred to medically as acute otitis media (AOM), is caused by inflammation brought on by an illness or allergies. If the Eustachian tubes\u2014the passageways between the middle ear and back of the throat\u2014become inflamed, fluid can become trapped behind the eardrum, putting pressure on it and causing an earache and other symptoms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Symptoms of an ear infection include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>Pain that does not go away when you clear your illness<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Drainage from the ear<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Muffled hearing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Dizziness<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Fever<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In many cases, bacteria grow in the built-up fluid. If this is the case, you\u2019ll need to get a prescription for antibiotics in order to clear it. For more information about how to find relief from ear pain or to schedule an appointment with an expert ear, nose and throat (ENT) physician, call <span class=\"company-name \">Ear, Nose &amp; Throat Associates<\/span> today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><ul class=\"related-posts\"><li><a href=\"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/the-impact-of-smoking-on-ent-health-risks-and-recovery\/\" class=\"related-post\">The Impact Of Smoking On ENT Health: Risks and Recovery<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/home-remedies-for-a-sore-throat-and-when-to-see-a-doctor\/\" class=\"related-post\">Home Remedies for a Sore Throat and When to See a Doctor<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/how-to-recognize-and-manage-aphasia\/\" class=\"related-post\">How To Recognize and Manage Aphasia<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re experiencing an earache, it\u2019s important to get to the bottom of what\u2019s causing it in order to seek the appropriate treatment. Two potential causes of an earache are the common cold and an ear infection. We review how to tell the difference between these conditions below. The Common Cold According to one 2020&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","schema":"","fname":"","lname":"","position":"","credentials":"","placeID":"","no_match":false,"name":"","company":"","review":"","address":"","city":"","state":"","zip":"","lat":"","lng":"","phone1":"","phone2":"","fax":"","mon1":"","mon2":"","tue1":"","tue2":"","wed1":"","wed2":"","thu1":"","thu2":"","fri1":"","fri2":"","sat1":"","sat2":"","sun1":"","sun2":"","hours-note":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3327"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3327"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3327\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3331,"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3327\/revisions\/3331"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3327"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3327"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entfortwayne.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}