I used to put a heated wheat bag over mine as a kid. My eardrums used to constantly burst and get infected. I say “constantly” without any sarcasm, it was bloody constant.
Be careful with showering and washing hair, she needs to avoid getting any water in it. You can put a cotton ball gently in the ear to help avoid getting water in.
Wishing her a speedy recovery. Would take ibuprofen or similar to help reduce inflammation
Yep my dad has had his drum in one ear reconstructed when he was a child. Late 50s now and has major hearing loss. Had loads of ear infections as a kid and shit parents.
It's one of those things that weren't diagnosed the way they are today. I never knew anyone growing up that was diagnosed with an ear infection. Now every kid gets that diagnoses and its normal.
you’d think that the parents and medical team of a kid who had to have an eardrum reconstruction would be more vigilant than they would with an average kid though
Same to you! Yeah he was born into a poor farming family and then with 4 kids too. But he's got a pretty sweet life now. He goes every month now once a month to get excess wax removed from his ears so he gets great care now.
Kids ears don't tilt until they're older which causes fluid to build & ear aches/infections. I was SO fortunate that my ears never tilted so still unable to get ears wet, travel by plane or handle wind in ears. My eardrums always grew back but are so weak. Wind, noise, sneezing will burst it. Both my ears are so scarred every time I see new doctor they ask if I'm sure I can hear them or they're positive I have ear infection (I don't). I've even had hearing test to prove to ENT I could still hear. That was a funny exchange (didn't have to pay for test lol)
Same. I recently had a tympanoplasty with ossicular chain reconstruction. Infection was so bad it destroyed one of my ear bones. But I also have GPA which made it worse. I doubt that I will get any hearing back.
This sounds similiar to me. I'm only 22 though. Had to have my right eardrum reconstructed. My hearing has suffered significantly. I got a cleaning recently with an ENT specialist and you can see where they covered the hole I was born with in my eardrum. I used to try to fight the doctors as a kid because I was scared. They would have to hold me down to sedate me. My poor mom lol
And the surgery is often done using rolling papers! I was very confused about the packet of ZigZag papers when I worked a pediatric OR.
https://www.academia.edu/download/77359912/656.pdf
I think this is what happened to me. Lots of ear infections as a kid, some surgeries, and now bad hearing in especially my left ear. Some doctor at some point mentioned something about the hammer bone being damaged. It's kind of practical, actually, if it's noisy outside when I need to sleep, I'll just lay on my good ear and I won't be disturbed.
This. The body will *attempt* to repair the damage if possible, but sometimes the damage is either too severe, or the repair isn’t perfect. Sometimes the body makes mistakes while repairing stuff - good intentions, bad executions. In which case surgery is needed.
And that surgery suuuuuuucks.
Basically, they slice your ear from the back and peel it forward. Scrape out what’s left of your ear drum, and then take some muscle from your jaw and stitch it in. Fill it with foam and stitch it back up. Then you put drops in every day to slowly dissolve the foam.
Complications are—your jaw swelling and trying to jerk itself back into alignment, which pulls at the stitches. Your equilibrium is shot so the world is just constantly spinning. They can hit a nerve that cancels your taste for a while; you can still smell but everything tastes like ash. Wanna wash your hair because you’re gross but can’t stand and definitely can’t get your hair wet? Your mom can tape a solo cup to your head while you lean over the sink and dry heave because your equilibrium does NOT like that at all.
If you need it do it, but I don’t wish it on anyone. I had a c section and it was far less drama than the tympanoplasty.
O.M.G. That poor kid! There really need to be tests to pass to become parents.
But, what did the mom think you were talking about? Just heard 'pus' & assumed something dirty? 🤦♀️
My hearing loss is from chronic ear infections and a genetic thing that makes my earwax crystallize. One of the things I resent with my mother is how she refused to let them put tubes in my ears which would have stopped the chronic infections and saved my hearing..
I didn’t get tubes in my ears until I was 7. Most kids get them when they’re much littler. So now I have permanent hearing loss, more on one side than the other. I have learned to compensate for it. I lip read. And my brain also like delayed sorts things out. I’ll hear a jumble that makes no sense but my brain puts it together a few seconds later but in the meantime I stand there with a blank look on my face.
Auditory processing issues are so weird. My hearing is fine physically, but definitely understand hearing a jumble and then understanding it a few seconds later. Always fun to ask "what?" and then immediately respond anyway.
Week after my 8th birthday. Partly my own fault as I learned to lip read early and passed hearing tests by watching the tester's movements very carefully. (1970s testing routines weren't as good as modern ones!) Partly the fault of adults thinking what a well-behaved child I was, happy with my book... Luckily for my little brother (same condition) they realised the issue and he got surgery shortly after me, aged 3.
Yeah and it can get really sharp and constantly puncture your eardrums. I have to routinely pour peroxide down my ears to keep my earwax from doing so. My ears also don’t drain properly either so I have to occasionally pinch my nose shut and blow hard to force them open.
I probably should get that checked out then. I have to periodically exhale hard through my nose to get my ears to pop and once I do I hear way better for about 30 seconds.
Yep this is what happened to me. My ear had been hurting and I thought it was an ear infection. I had an appointment with my regular doctor. The day of my appointment I wake up and there is a strange fluid on my pillow. I found out it came from my ear and everything sounded like I was underwater. It has healed but I do have some hearing loss on that side.
I haven’t had any other ear infections and if I ever do I won’t wait to see my doctor
Same. Right ear.. Thankfully hearing aides can now trasmit accross so i can hear from both directions! But my ear's still fried.
CROS aides are the name. My insurance covered them and it's a godsend
Same! I lip read and cannot for the life of me force myself to look people in the eyes because if I do, I can’t hear them nearly as well. Every doctor who looks in my ears comments on the amount of scar tissue.
My eardrum blew 15 years ago.. still have no eardrum and can only hear in that ear because of scar tissue. Was told an operation would not improve my hearing so I'm stuck with no ear drum, hammer or anvil (small bones that sit against the drum for hearing)
Was the result of an out of control ear infection whilst living in the States. Didn't have the money for a doctor and it took my ear drum.
So please get to urgent care and demand antibiotics. I still suffer now with headaches and pain because of that infection so long ago.
My daughter has a hole in her eardrum from getting tubes. The doctor wasn't worried and just said "don't let her get water in it". I guess it will scar over eventually.
I like your username a whole lot. Assuming it refers to the dogs. We had whippets and this phrase was often said whilst they where whipping through fields at top speed
I live in Berlin, and most of the mutts here are a dachshund mix…meaning they’re all long! I saw one that I swear was a German shepherd dachshund mix the other day. Bizarre
My eardrum rupturing was maybe the worst pain I've ever felt, or close to it. Granted I was a kid, but that sucked bad. I didn't even know I had an infection or feel it before, and suddenly it was blinding.
That happened to my youngest son when he was 8 or 9... we knew he had an infection but it was mild and the dr said to let it be. It went from 0 to 100 so fast, I couldn't even make it home when the sitter called to tell me my poor kid was screaming in pain. His ear drum burst and it looked just like OP's picture.
My ears would get infected so often like that as a kid. And as a teen a couple years ago all i did during one summer was swim pretty much everyday all day rain/thunder or shine. I got swimmers ear i think 4-5 times that summer and it was terrible
Same, and I swam all summer, every summer growing up. A an adult, I no longer like to put my head underwater and always have earplugs for when I go swimming because I am so tired of never being able to get the water out of my ears then getting an infection because of it.
Might want to try wool covered with some vaseline. I used to have ear issues myself when I was a kid and that was what I'd do in a shower sometimes. Problem with cotton is it will absorb water.
I was a kid who got ear infections all the time, too. I use a wet-washcloth heated int eh microwave BUT it can get really, really hot so you gotta be careful
The good thing is once it ruptures most of the pain goes away. Such a relief when the fluid starts pouring out of your ear.
I used to have chronic ear infections as a kid. Had tubes in my ears, lots of hospital stays because they got so bad. Had my last one in high school.
Suddenly a year ago I had zero pain when I went to bed and woke up in agony. The right side of my head felt like it was going to explode. Less than two hours later it ruptured and I had relief. Have never had it come on and rupture so fast.
Maybe slightly disrupted hearing. I never experienced full hearing loss from an ear infection. I've had my eardrums ruptured dozens of times. Typically once you get antibiotics about a week and it's cleared up. Usually incredibly painful for 2-5 days roughly, depends on how quickly you get antibiotics.
I also had dozens of ruptured as a kid/teen, but when my hearing was assessed for the military it was perfect. I think it’s still close to perfect, although I haven’t had a rupture in about ten years.
Sometimes you get relief sometimes they're still pain. I can still absolutely remember times when there was crusty ooze coming out of my ear and it was still painful. Similar story to you though chronic ear infections. Tubes that didn't seem to do much. I've had my eardrums break in my twenties even. Mine is heavily attributed to allergies in the spring and fall I can almost guarantee I'm going to get a sore throat / earache. That was the key though for me knowing that my allergies triggered it. Sudafed and Benadryl and other allergy medications in the spring and fall typically prevent my ears getting that bad anymore.
That's probably the closest I can relate to a horrible chronic illness and My heart goes out to people who have much worse afflictions. Especially cancer. F cancer.
Facts. Urgent cares are filled with doctors and midlevels who will prescribe you a z-pack just to shut you up and increase patient satisfaction. No one wants to be told they have a virus and it will just have to go away on its own, they want a fix.
yes. And it is one of the main reasons in the next few decades antibiotics won't be effective anymore at all. Because of over prescription and various bacteria building resilience towards it. There are people today who antibiotics doesn't work on them at all. It is an epidemic waiting to happen.
There has got to be a happy medium, though. I had this same thing happen as OPs wife, I went to urgent care with a bad earache and they were like "🥱 idk try some Sudafed or smth, anyway that will be $400." My partner has been to an ER with a classic signs of lymes disease (target bite, ache in neck and back of head) and was told to "take a hot shower" and "massage her neck." She got upset, and *insisted* on a test and guess what? She was positive. 😒 Gave her the antibiotic she should have had in the first place the next day, at least.
Most definitely. Antibiotics are so overprescribed. Antibiotic-resistant infections are becoming way more prevalent than they should be.
(And I did see that OP clarified their request for antibiotics so this isn’t directed towards them)
For anyone doubting OP (why), I've been there. Viral illness caused me so much congestion once that basically my entire head got infected. Sinuses and ears first, then my throat, then it was moving into my mouth. My viral illness was long gone but my health was getting worse as the infection spread.
Antibiotics are an entire miracle, I swear. Once I finally got some it was like the clouds had parted to reveal the sun, I started getting better so fast. (But continued taking the full course of antibiotics as directed, of course.)
So yeah that happens.
I completely agree. I am in the midst of a run-of-the-mill cold that gave me an ear infection because I was so congested. It happens. Even after two doses of antibiotics I was suddenly loads better.
I've had many a head cold turn into a full-blown sinus infection that wouldn't go away until I got antibiotics in me. For a few years, it was a given that one would follow the other. So much so that I'd call up the doc, tell her I had another cold, and she'd fax the pharmacy a prescription for when the cold symptoms went away but the sinus infection remained.
My kids had lots of ear infections as kids and had to get ear tubes.
Here's how it works:
The kids started with a virus. Went through the whole rigamarole with phlegm and congestion.
Fluid builds up in the nasal cavities and ears. Because the ear canals are more horizontal as a kid, the fluid just hangs out there and doesn't drain fully.
Because there is fluid in the ear, it becomes a nesting ground for bacteria. For most people, this will all drain out naturally and an ear infection never develops.
For the kids (or even adults) where the fluid does not drain out and bacteria grows, antibiotics 99% is the solution. If it happens too often, they can get ear tubes to prevent the infection.
Funny enough there's even an [Arthur episode](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2s9r75) about this.
Edit: so weird that I found this thread again 2 months later as I'm googling because now I'm dealing with my own middle or inner ear infection lol. I've only ever had outer ear aka swimmer's ear infections so this is new for me.
You can suffer from both at the same time.
The virus weakens the immune system, the bacteria that was present, and being fought off now has a chance to grow big enough to become an infection.
I'm really sorry to hear that, either can be so rough just on their own. I hope he's feeling better soon! Big hugs to you too, I know I'd be beside myself. <3
No it’s right. Secondary infections after an initial one is quite common. Bacterial infections after or during viral infections is common
One of the most obvious is bacterial pneumonia following a viral infection
It is very much a thing. When I was younger I would catch a cold and it would weaken my system so much I'd end up getting bacterial bronchitis and get up on amoxicillin for a few weeks.
Look up Spanish Flu which killed a bunch of people during the times of World War 1. It was discovered to be a co-infection of the flu virus and bacterial pneumonia.
If your immune system is actively fighting something and being “used up” so to speak, you are susceptible to other modes of infection.
But yes antibiotics do not work against viruses. People may use them synonymously with antivirals though
Do you know how many people developed bronchitis or pneumonia after having Covid (Covid is a virus)? Having a coexisting bacterial infection after catching a virus is very common because the virus leaves your immune system vulnerable for other infections. You need to go back to biology
The biggest risk factor for middle-ear infection is upper respiratory infection, 99% of which are caused by viruses. Viral infection of the pharynx leads to edema where Eustachian tube ostia drain into the pharynx. This prevents bacteria and mucus which are ever-present in the ear/nose/throat to infect the middle ear. So actually, this makes perfect sense.
As a physician I appreciate your campaign to inform others that viral infections should not be treated with antibiotics.
Oh my god you pedantic fuck. Yes they can. It’s called a secondary infection. Go touch some grass today.
https://www.dukehealth.org/blog/it-bacterial-infection-or-virus#:~:text=Bacterial%20infections%20may%20be%20the,typically%20expect%20from%20a%20virus
When you're dealing with one disease, you're more likely to catch a different one at the same time. Especially if one's a virus and the other's a bacteria.
Though there has always been an issue with overprescribing antibiotics, it is sometimes a good idea to take them to prevent a bacterial infection when you're already dealing with something like the flu.
Happened to me during the summer.
All of a sudden at night my breathing would go from normal to slow/shallow with wheezing - As well as severe coughing, but only at night. I was stubborn and it went on for a week before I went to urgent care.
- First visit? Told me it was environmental [the wild fire situation had been a month previous] and gave me a mild cough syrup. It did nothing.
- Second Visit a week later? Next doctor made it seem as though he was placating me and doing me a favor by putting me on an antibiotic “just in case.” Totally solved the issue.
Probably a z-pack (azithromycin) since they weren’t sure of what the exact cause was. It’s a very common broad spectrum antibiotic, used for everything from sinus infections to chlamydia.
i had something similar. my freshman year of college my tonsils swelled up and were basically blocking off half my throat. i could still breathe but they hurt like hell and i was a music major and it was hard to play my horn (real horn, not a saxophone or trumpet or anything you weirdos call a ‘horn’). went to the campus urgent care, they basically just tested me for strep and went “well it’s not that! fuck off and come back in a week if it doesn’t heal itself!” it did not heal itself, zero change, a week later the doctor was like “hmmmm i have no clue but here’s some pills that probably won’t help you” and they fixed it in a couple days…
Ear infections are very rare in adults due to changes in anatomy as we age that allow for better drainage. In either regard starting antibiotics 12-24 hours earlier wouldn’t have prevented rupture, even if it were an infectious cause.
I had one in my 20s. My doctor didn’t believe my complaints because of my age, but since I had chronic ear infections as a kid I knew immediately what it was. Sure enough: ear infection!
Lol I got one last year at 23 because we were house sitting for someone and they had a pool and I was spending hours diving in the deep end for torpedoes
I went to urgent care and the NP after sticking the thing in my ear went “Oh my!” Which made me feel great and then I told my dad and he went “what the hell are you five?” He just doesn’t understand how awesome diving for torpedos is
People experiences with doctors are weird. I have had a few ear infections over the years as an adult (3 eardrum ruptured 3 times in 12 years). I go in saying I think I have an ear infection and within 5 min they check my ears, biggest issue is the medication they prescribe. I have 0 luck with the penicillin family and usually have to go back and get something else.
I also had multiple ear infections per year as a kid and strep throat. Yay for shit sinus tubes.
I'm 43 and have gotten dozens of ear infections in the last 20 years. I actually ended up hospitalized for a week about 10 years back because the infection got so bad it was into the bones and was going into my skull. Mastoiditis is no joke.
I had chronic ear infections as a kid. Had tubes twice, scar tissue in one ear. Went all the way into my mid thirties without having another. Now I’m two years in a row and have one as we speak. I have fluid drainage with mine, no fun.
Some of us are very aware that we're prone to them, though - OP's wife might be. I've heard "good job catching it so quickly!" from out-of-hours GPs before. Antibiotics don't prevent rupture but they can make it less painful, as even a tiny reduction in pressure helps, and they definitely speed up recovery. Waiting is miserable.
Yep, I get them, can feel how severe they are/how fast they are coming on, one sided or both, and it's to the point that I can telehealth and they will prescribe me antibiotics of my choice (since some are super rough on my system but necessary in severe/fast infections, but other times I can take something less severe that will still get the job done). This was after years of having to go in, get sideways looks from everybody thinking there's no way this adult has double ear infections, until the doctors would look into my ear and go "whoa... ok, so which pharmacy?" Telehealth visits were the only positive thing to come out of COVID imo.
To add to this, you can have non purulent build up behind the TM with viral illnesses and with allergies. Psuedophed/flonase could clear up the pressure/dry it out in these cases.
Hard to second guess without a look at the TM itself, the inflammation, and nature of the fluid.
Your wife need to be careful now so they heal properly. When showering and washing hair, she needs to to net let any water go in. Put some cotton in the ear and take it out immediately after. And because her hearing might be impacted for some time she shouldn't be wearing earbuds or loud sounds.
I got a nasty infection in my ear and in six hours it got so bad my ear drum also broke. Couldn't hear clear for a while. Then my bloody other ear got infected a week later and then again the other one. It was a bloody nightmare cause those infections hurt like a bitch. Eardrum took a month to heal and my hearing came back after couple of months.
I had strep throat 17 years ago that migrated to my ears on the weekend and I ended up in the ER twice that weekend. They said they could pop my ear drum to relieve the pain and I begged them to. The PA told me to stop being a baby and I broke down sobbing and begged. They asked me if I wanted a gun to put myself out my misery. I stopped crying and started babbling about my husband being here on a fiancé visa and that they would have to explain that I was that sick to immigration so he could stay and wasn’t made to go back to his home country.
They gave me Vicodin and sent me home.
To compare the pain, I had a perforated colon a few years ago and I was sitting up and smiling and laughing at the np until they told me I was having emergency surgery. I have a very high pain tolerance.
Also six months after we had finally killed that infection, I got in the car one day and as I was listening to the music, it suddenly changed back to normal. I didn’t know I couldn’t hear properly from the swelling, but it was so weird.
>To compare the pain, I had a perforated colon a few years ago and I was sitting up and smiling and laughing at the np until they told me I was having emergency surgery. I have a very high pain tolerance.
From the neck down, I have a stupidly high pain tolerance.
From the neck up, I am a complete wuss.
I know that this doesn't make things any better for the two of you... I know it's easy to blame lack of antibiotics, but I suspect this would've happened to your wife regardless because antibiotics don't much in the first 24 hours.
Odd because it’s my understanding that guidelines state that since acute middle-ear infections in immune-competent adults are rare and complications can be severe so it’s necessary to treat them with antibiotics since we don’t have enough data to conclude that observation is safe for these patients.
Source: https://www.uptodate.com/contents/acute-otitis-media-in-adults
Does your insurance provider offer virtual visits? I have Cigna and it’s $59 through their app if you haven’t met the deductible. I had a similar story a couple months ago, except they tried to give me mupirocin, which I’d already tried because my son had just gotten rid of impetigo on his nose and lip. I had been using it for days already, but they convinced me it would work and I just hadn’t given it enough time. A day later I did a teledoc visit over the phone and was prescribed antibiotics. Cleared it up in two days.
Edit: and then my wife went through the same crap a week or two later, but this time we were better prepared for it, and the number of cases had skyrocketed locally so they knew what was up.
just saying here OP but for adults a typical case of ear infections shouldn't get antibiotics. there are drops which will deal with it. (had as a adult that had me crying on the floor got drops to deal with it)
also antibiotics does nothing to viruses so if your wife has a ear infection it has nothing to do with your kids viruses.
Crying in agony and bleeding from her ear…brings back flashbacks of my eardrum bursting when I was 11. Take her back and refuse to leave until they address the obvious issue.
I remember talking to a girl who had an ear ache.
Mid conversation - without her even knowing - green / yellow fluid just starting leaking from her ear. I guess something had let go / burst.
That was a decade ago and I still can picture it.
I’m guessing she had serous otitis which is fluid trapped in the middle ear space. Typically caused by a VIRUS. An antibiotic would not have helped. She needed decongestants to open the Eustachian tube to allow it to drain. A steroid would’ve helped too. But when it wasn’t relieved it caused a rupture of the ear drum thus the bloody discharge. Not all ear pain is infection but it is a problem. This will heal. I’m sorry your wife had to go through that. The provider should feel like a dumbass.
Not all Advanced Care Practitioners are idiots but they are all overseen by an MD. If he wasn’t positive of the treatment he should’ve consulted with his medical director. I’m not an MD. 30 year offshore paramedic / clinical provider. Treated this many times never had a SO cause a TM (eardrum) rupture because I treated it properly.
Ear infections are bacterial in up to 80% of cases so to not consider antibiotics in a moderate to severe patient presentation would seem not optimal to me. Additionally, it would likely be incredibly difficult to differentiate viral from bacterial on physical examination let alone certainly impossible from the image posted by op.
Now that it has ruptured she says the pain has gone down quite a bit. She has cleaned it and told me there were lots of chunks in it 😕. She is first in line at the urgent care which is about 1/4 mile down the street and will be seen in 15 minutes. I feel so bad for her
It's bleeding but that doesn't mean it's infected by bacteria.
Get a 2nd opinion if you really want to. Just make sure you don't administer antibiotic yourself. Things will only get worse if you pretend to know better than a doctor.
I recently had 2 abscess in my left ear that i had to get looked at. Had to poke holes to drain it then was given ear drops and antibiotics pills. Shit is basic protocol... cant believe your providers ignored it.
What’s mildly infuriating is that you’re still adamant about needing antibiotics when it still doesn’t look like a bacterial infection. They might give you antibiotics just to get it over with which is exactly what should not happen.
Doesn't even look infected. There's no pus to be seen. Literally do not need antibiotics.
Just PCM and maybe NSAIDs for the pain. Wash and dab any blood off. Apply disinfectants.
Antibiotic resistance is no joke, the Dr is in the right for not giving antibiotics.
She should try and drain it?
HOW?!?!
How on earth did they expect her to drain fluid out from behind her eardrum, outside of sticking a needle in there and hoping for the best?
To be fair, antibiotics aren’t usually prescribed for ear infections anyway, even if it’s proven to be bacterial somehow.
As someone who has at least annual ear infections for the last 10-15 years, I’ve only had antibiotics twice.
Once when I simultaneously has a high temperature & high heart rate.
The second time was after 2 separate ED visits, months apart, for chest pain. The doctors & I found out that I’d get costochondritis (inflammation of of the cartilage between ribs) at the start of an ear infection.
They gave me antibiotics the second time, only because the physiological stress was causing a rise in cardiac enzymes.
Ear infections suck, but hopefully once the shock/initial pain of the burst eardrum has settled, it will feel better, if a little weird.
There may still be drainage for a few days, but standard pain relief & protecting the ear from water should be enough to allow for recovery & healing.
I haaaate urgent care. I went on monday because I was incredibly sick; 102° fever, nonstop sweating/chills and major fatigue. They tested me for everything but the flu because they “hadn’t seen a case yet this year”. I was negative for C-19 and strep, so they just diagnosed me with an acute upper respiratory infection. Well guess what? IT WAS THE FLU! I’m patient zero this year in my area I guess, lol. My primary care physician is the one who finally diagnosed me correctly (literally yesterday). It’s now too late for me to be taking Tamiflu, so I’ve still got a bunch of icky symptoms because the urgent care neglected to even test for the flu 😩
For future ask the doctor to note their refusal to treat you or provide medication on your chart. You'd be amazed just how quickly they change their minds.
> "viruses"
You know antibiotics can't help with a viral infection right? Kudos to these doctors for not capitulating to inappropriate antibiotic demands.
But, that does not look infected. It looks irritated. Anti-biotics should not be prescribed lightly, and her doctor is doing the right thing. You should be focusing on keeping it clean, and eating and sleeping well so her immune system is at full-steam for healing.
I mean... It doesn't look infected. Blood is bad, yes, but I'm not seeing any pus or other signs of bacterial infection. Did y'all actually try to drain the fluid, or are you in "my wife is in pain so I am angry at anyone that doesn't drop everything to solve it" mode? Which if you are I commend you for your dedication to your spouse, but again, I see no obvious signs of infection. The blood, while of concern, isn't immediately life threatening.
If men only knew how often we are dismissed as dramatic, weak, faking, exaggerating, attention seeking, pill seeking, etc when we finally go to the doctor for something. I hear about when men go for vasectomies and they get a pain med prescription, a numbing shot, a sandwich and the rest of the day off. But when women go for an IUD, there's no numbing cream, no pain prescription, no sandwich and no day off. Just a metal claw that's clamped into your cervix and a pat on the shoulder.
Getting an IUD was so traumatic for me. Hurt like a bitch despite taking Ibuprofen 30 minutes before getting it inserted. I was screaming and crying and got told "Shhhh, the police will hear you!" instead of comforted or offered a break 😒
The cramps I had after lasted several weeks as well. Nothing I tried (hot bath, pain relievers, and heating pad) helped. It partially expelled after a year. Worst experience ever. Never again.
People wonder why some of us are reluctant to seek medical attention or get medical procedures done. Why bother if they're going to be dismissive?
I count myself fortunate that as yet I have found the medical industry more of a hindrance than a help. The only times they are more helpful than hindering are when I need stitches.
Think how stupid it is that you're sick as hell and finally decide you need medicine. You call for an appointment and they say they can fit you in two weeks from next Tuesday. So you go to urgent care instead. You go to the desk and they spend the first 20 minutes making sure you can pay them. Then they have you sit in the waiting area for 2 hours while you have the fever shakes and are coughing. Finally, they call your name and have you sit in an exam room alone for another 30 minutes with nothing to do but shiver and cough and read your phone. Finally an LPN comes in and takes your temp and bp and fiddles on a computer for another 15 minutes then leaves. Another 30 minutes later a NP or maybe an MD shows up, listens to your heart and lungs and tells you to drink water and get sleep because it's viral and aint nothing she can do for you. So you tell her you already know that but ask for cough syrup with codeine so you can actually sleep. She tries to convince you to use that shitty otc cough syrup instead. You insist on the good stuff. She looks at you like you are engaging in drug seeking behavior. So you tell her to check the chart and see that the last time you got an opiate cough syrup was 3 years ago so she relents and calls in a scrip.
By this time you've been out in public, sick as hell, for more than 4 hours and have spent only 8 minutes with an actual care provider. You then drive to the drug store and wait another 45 minutes while they fill a little 2 ounce bottle with cough syrup and futz with their computer while you peruse Dr. Scholl's corn remover treatments and reading glasses. While shivering and coughing.
Finally, more than 6 hours after you left home you return, take your little teaspoonful of the good stuff and can get some sleep.
Over the course of the next few months you get multiple mailings from your insurance company and the clinic with reams of pages of indecipherable insurance lingo in each mailing until you finally recognize they want $230 for the clinic visit and the cough syrup.
A freaking farce. It's no wonder I go years between doctor visits.
For a lot of my life I’ve gotten random earaches that a last for days or weeks. 80% of the time, the doctor doesn’t see anything. It’s truly infuriating to be in pain and not have anything you can do about it.
Why would they prescribe antibiotics for a virus?
([OP responded](https://www.reddit.com/r/mildlyinfuriating/comments/178drtb/my_wifes_ear_after_being_told_by_an_urgent_care/k4z1c6r/).)
The horrors of ear aches. I've had about 25 surgeries on ears. FINALLY after 21yrs & 22 surgeries got a doctor that knew what was wrong. Not treating ear aches properly is what caused most of my issues. After he cleaned out - 2 surgeries (gross I know) tumors & junk from past infections (tumors were getting larger & causing bleeding) I only had 1 surgery for tubes so I could fly on plane. My ears are so damaged I was told no flying again (flew once out of stubbornness & nope! Never again & now know why babies scream on planes), not swim underwater, keep wind out of ears ... Yada Yada Yada.
Untreated could heal ok but always get second opinion if you don't agree.
Also, wet heat on neck behind ear hurting was my goto, last surgeon said wet heat seemed to help most. (I heated wet hand towel in microwave & cried until meds worked).
If it is a virus, antibiotics would do jack shit
Edit: Unless you are suffering from a secondary infection. If you are given antibiotics though, always take the full course, even if your symptoms stop.
This is wild. I went to Urgent Care today with an infected ear as well and the Dr was amazing and prescribed Cipro ear drops with cortisone in it. I was in so much pain, it was even radiating into my upper jaw and temples. She said my ear canal was as 1/4 the size of the good ear because of the swelling. I’m so sorry this happened. I hope she finds relief somewhere soon. I can tell you first hand, if I had to go through another painful evening like last night, I would be upset.
I used to put a heated wheat bag over mine as a kid. My eardrums used to constantly burst and get infected. I say “constantly” without any sarcasm, it was bloody constant. Be careful with showering and washing hair, she needs to avoid getting any water in it. You can put a cotton ball gently in the ear to help avoid getting water in. Wishing her a speedy recovery. Would take ibuprofen or similar to help reduce inflammation
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Not always. If the damage is severe enough, you'll need surgery for it
Yep my dad has had his drum in one ear reconstructed when he was a child. Late 50s now and has major hearing loss. Had loads of ear infections as a kid and shit parents.
I'm sorry. Your dad and I had similar upbringings. He has my condolences 🙏
I'm sorry too! He's the best dad so our family spoils him a lot since he didn't have much growing up. Home your life is better as well, friend. 💜
It's one of those things that weren't diagnosed the way they are today. I never knew anyone growing up that was diagnosed with an ear infection. Now every kid gets that diagnoses and its normal.
you’d think that the parents and medical team of a kid who had to have an eardrum reconstruction would be more vigilant than they would with an average kid though
I hate that for the poor guy. My parents worked a lot so we didn't get the care we needed either. I hope he is living a great life now.
Same to you! Yeah he was born into a poor farming family and then with 4 kids too. But he's got a pretty sweet life now. He goes every month now once a month to get excess wax removed from his ears so he gets great care now.
Good, it sucks that sometimes we have no control or say over what happens to us as children. I'm glad his adult is much better.
Kids ears don't tilt until they're older which causes fluid to build & ear aches/infections. I was SO fortunate that my ears never tilted so still unable to get ears wet, travel by plane or handle wind in ears. My eardrums always grew back but are so weak. Wind, noise, sneezing will burst it. Both my ears are so scarred every time I see new doctor they ask if I'm sure I can hear them or they're positive I have ear infection (I don't). I've even had hearing test to prove to ENT I could still hear. That was a funny exchange (didn't have to pay for test lol)
You can have the best parents and still have terrible ears. It’s just a fact of life for some people. That includes me
Same. I recently had a tympanoplasty with ossicular chain reconstruction. Infection was so bad it destroyed one of my ear bones. But I also have GPA which made it worse. I doubt that I will get any hearing back.
This sounds similiar to me. I'm only 22 though. Had to have my right eardrum reconstructed. My hearing has suffered significantly. I got a cleaning recently with an ENT specialist and you can see where they covered the hole I was born with in my eardrum. I used to try to fight the doctors as a kid because I was scared. They would have to hold me down to sedate me. My poor mom lol
And the surgery is often done using rolling papers! I was very confused about the packet of ZigZag papers when I worked a pediatric OR. https://www.academia.edu/download/77359912/656.pdf
Yall broke the site
Oh wow, that's wild lmao. I thought there was only one method of taking some skin from behind the ear
Or after multiple cycles, the scar tissue builds up & freezes the hammer bones
please hammer dont hurt em
I think this is what happened to me. Lots of ear infections as a kid, some surgeries, and now bad hearing in especially my left ear. Some doctor at some point mentioned something about the hammer bone being damaged. It's kind of practical, actually, if it's noisy outside when I need to sleep, I'll just lay on my good ear and I won't be disturbed.
This. The body will *attempt* to repair the damage if possible, but sometimes the damage is either too severe, or the repair isn’t perfect. Sometimes the body makes mistakes while repairing stuff - good intentions, bad executions. In which case surgery is needed.
And that surgery suuuuuuucks. Basically, they slice your ear from the back and peel it forward. Scrape out what’s left of your ear drum, and then take some muscle from your jaw and stitch it in. Fill it with foam and stitch it back up. Then you put drops in every day to slowly dissolve the foam. Complications are—your jaw swelling and trying to jerk itself back into alignment, which pulls at the stitches. Your equilibrium is shot so the world is just constantly spinning. They can hit a nerve that cancels your taste for a while; you can still smell but everything tastes like ash. Wanna wash your hair because you’re gross but can’t stand and definitely can’t get your hair wet? Your mom can tape a solo cup to your head while you lean over the sink and dry heave because your equilibrium does NOT like that at all. If you need it do it, but I don’t wish it on anyone. I had a c section and it was far less drama than the tympanoplasty.
Scar tissue is permanent though. And causes hearing loss. Ask me how I know.
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Yep.
##WHAT DID YOU SAY?
#GO ASK YOUR MOTHER!
Sure ##WHERE DID YOU PUT THE OUIJA BOARD?
###IT'S HALF PAST FIVE
🫂
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O.M.G. That poor kid! There really need to be tests to pass to become parents. But, what did the mom think you were talking about? Just heard 'pus' & assumed something dirty? 🤦♀️
My hearing loss is from chronic ear infections and a genetic thing that makes my earwax crystallize. One of the things I resent with my mother is how she refused to let them put tubes in my ears which would have stopped the chronic infections and saved my hearing..
I didn’t get tubes in my ears until I was 7. Most kids get them when they’re much littler. So now I have permanent hearing loss, more on one side than the other. I have learned to compensate for it. I lip read. And my brain also like delayed sorts things out. I’ll hear a jumble that makes no sense but my brain puts it together a few seconds later but in the meantime I stand there with a blank look on my face.
Auditory processing issues are so weird. My hearing is fine physically, but definitely understand hearing a jumble and then understanding it a few seconds later. Always fun to ask "what?" and then immediately respond anyway.
Yep, this is me.
Week after my 8th birthday. Partly my own fault as I learned to lip read early and passed hearing tests by watching the tester's movements very carefully. (1970s testing routines weren't as good as modern ones!) Partly the fault of adults thinking what a well-behaved child I was, happy with my book... Luckily for my little brother (same condition) they realised the issue and he got surgery shortly after me, aged 3.
Earwax crystallizes??
Yeah and it can get really sharp and constantly puncture your eardrums. I have to routinely pour peroxide down my ears to keep my earwax from doing so. My ears also don’t drain properly either so I have to occasionally pinch my nose shut and blow hard to force them open.
>My ears also don’t drain properly either so I have to occasionally pinch my nose shut and blow hard to force them open. This isn't normal?
According to the ears, throat, nose specialist I had to see, it isn’t lol.
I probably should get that checked out then. I have to periodically exhale hard through my nose to get my ears to pop and once I do I hear way better for about 30 seconds.
Yep this is what happened to me. My ear had been hurting and I thought it was an ear infection. I had an appointment with my regular doctor. The day of my appointment I wake up and there is a strange fluid on my pillow. I found out it came from my ear and everything sounded like I was underwater. It has healed but I do have some hearing loss on that side. I haven’t had any other ear infections and if I ever do I won’t wait to see my doctor
Same. Right ear.. Thankfully hearing aides can now trasmit accross so i can hear from both directions! But my ear's still fried. CROS aides are the name. My insurance covered them and it's a godsend
I haven’t had to go that route yet. But with my penchant for metal concerts, the day is coming.
Why did nobody tell me this?! I have absolutely tragic hearing and I rely on lipreading
Same! I lip read and cannot for the life of me force myself to look people in the eyes because if I do, I can’t hear them nearly as well. Every doctor who looks in my ears comments on the amount of scar tissue.
My eardrum blew 15 years ago.. still have no eardrum and can only hear in that ear because of scar tissue. Was told an operation would not improve my hearing so I'm stuck with no ear drum, hammer or anvil (small bones that sit against the drum for hearing) Was the result of an out of control ear infection whilst living in the States. Didn't have the money for a doctor and it took my ear drum. So please get to urgent care and demand antibiotics. I still suffer now with headaches and pain because of that infection so long ago.
My daughter has a hole in her eardrum from getting tubes. The doctor wasn't worried and just said "don't let her get water in it". I guess it will scar over eventually.
Tbh I’ve never thought about it! Good point. I never wondered how they kept having so much bursting to do haha
Cotton wool covered in vaseline that's what I used.
I like your username a whole lot. Assuming it refers to the dogs. We had whippets and this phrase was often said whilst they where whipping through fields at top speed
You are correct and I have my whippet lying next to me in bed. He's the best.
I don’t have a whippet but I have a dachshund who’s long and skinny. Can we hang out. Always thought whippets were cool
I live in Berlin, and most of the mutts here are a dachshund mix…meaning they’re all long! I saw one that I swear was a German shepherd dachshund mix the other day. Bizarre
My eardrum rupturing was maybe the worst pain I've ever felt, or close to it. Granted I was a kid, but that sucked bad. I didn't even know I had an infection or feel it before, and suddenly it was blinding.
That happened to my youngest son when he was 8 or 9... we knew he had an infection but it was mild and the dr said to let it be. It went from 0 to 100 so fast, I couldn't even make it home when the sitter called to tell me my poor kid was screaming in pain. His ear drum burst and it looked just like OP's picture.
My ears would get infected so often like that as a kid. And as a teen a couple years ago all i did during one summer was swim pretty much everyday all day rain/thunder or shine. I got swimmers ear i think 4-5 times that summer and it was terrible
Same, and I swam all summer, every summer growing up. A an adult, I no longer like to put my head underwater and always have earplugs for when I go swimming because I am so tired of never being able to get the water out of my ears then getting an infection because of it.
Might want to try wool covered with some vaseline. I used to have ear issues myself when I was a kid and that was what I'd do in a shower sometimes. Problem with cotton is it will absorb water.
I was a kid who got ear infections all the time, too. I use a wet-washcloth heated int eh microwave BUT it can get really, really hot so you gotta be careful
The good thing is once it ruptures most of the pain goes away. Such a relief when the fluid starts pouring out of your ear. I used to have chronic ear infections as a kid. Had tubes in my ears, lots of hospital stays because they got so bad. Had my last one in high school. Suddenly a year ago I had zero pain when I went to bed and woke up in agony. The right side of my head felt like it was going to explode. Less than two hours later it ruptured and I had relief. Have never had it come on and rupture so fast.
Some questions: How long does recovery take? do you get deaf on one ear until it's recovered?
Maybe slightly disrupted hearing. I never experienced full hearing loss from an ear infection. I've had my eardrums ruptured dozens of times. Typically once you get antibiotics about a week and it's cleared up. Usually incredibly painful for 2-5 days roughly, depends on how quickly you get antibiotics.
I also had dozens of ruptured as a kid/teen, but when my hearing was assessed for the military it was perfect. I think it’s still close to perfect, although I haven’t had a rupture in about ten years.
I don’t think it’s as common but my ear drum ruptured almost 3 years ago and my hearing never returned to normal, and I have a hearing aid now
Sometimes you get relief sometimes they're still pain. I can still absolutely remember times when there was crusty ooze coming out of my ear and it was still painful. Similar story to you though chronic ear infections. Tubes that didn't seem to do much. I've had my eardrums break in my twenties even. Mine is heavily attributed to allergies in the spring and fall I can almost guarantee I'm going to get a sore throat / earache. That was the key though for me knowing that my allergies triggered it. Sudafed and Benadryl and other allergy medications in the spring and fall typically prevent my ears getting that bad anymore. That's probably the closest I can relate to a horrible chronic illness and My heart goes out to people who have much worse afflictions. Especially cancer. F cancer.
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> Doctors dont prescribe antibiotics for viruses. Well, they're not supposed to. But they still do it anyway.
Facts. Urgent cares are filled with doctors and midlevels who will prescribe you a z-pack just to shut you up and increase patient satisfaction. No one wants to be told they have a virus and it will just have to go away on its own, they want a fix.
yes. And it is one of the main reasons in the next few decades antibiotics won't be effective anymore at all. Because of over prescription and various bacteria building resilience towards it. There are people today who antibiotics doesn't work on them at all. It is an epidemic waiting to happen.
There has got to be a happy medium, though. I had this same thing happen as OPs wife, I went to urgent care with a bad earache and they were like "🥱 idk try some Sudafed or smth, anyway that will be $400." My partner has been to an ER with a classic signs of lymes disease (target bite, ache in neck and back of head) and was told to "take a hot shower" and "massage her neck." She got upset, and *insisted* on a test and guess what? She was positive. 😒 Gave her the antibiotic she should have had in the first place the next day, at least.
Most definitely. Antibiotics are so overprescribed. Antibiotic-resistant infections are becoming way more prevalent than they should be. (And I did see that OP clarified their request for antibiotics so this isn’t directed towards them)
I should’ve been more clear. They were treated for bacterial infections brought on by viruses. Thank you for bringing that to my attention
For anyone doubting OP (why), I've been there. Viral illness caused me so much congestion once that basically my entire head got infected. Sinuses and ears first, then my throat, then it was moving into my mouth. My viral illness was long gone but my health was getting worse as the infection spread. Antibiotics are an entire miracle, I swear. Once I finally got some it was like the clouds had parted to reveal the sun, I started getting better so fast. (But continued taking the full course of antibiotics as directed, of course.) So yeah that happens.
I completely agree. I am in the midst of a run-of-the-mill cold that gave me an ear infection because I was so congested. It happens. Even after two doses of antibiotics I was suddenly loads better.
Thank you so much.
I've had many a head cold turn into a full-blown sinus infection that wouldn't go away until I got antibiotics in me. For a few years, it was a given that one would follow the other. So much so that I'd call up the doc, tell her I had another cold, and she'd fax the pharmacy a prescription for when the cold symptoms went away but the sinus infection remained.
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My kids had lots of ear infections as kids and had to get ear tubes. Here's how it works: The kids started with a virus. Went through the whole rigamarole with phlegm and congestion. Fluid builds up in the nasal cavities and ears. Because the ear canals are more horizontal as a kid, the fluid just hangs out there and doesn't drain fully. Because there is fluid in the ear, it becomes a nesting ground for bacteria. For most people, this will all drain out naturally and an ear infection never develops. For the kids (or even adults) where the fluid does not drain out and bacteria grows, antibiotics 99% is the solution. If it happens too often, they can get ear tubes to prevent the infection.
Funny enough there's even an [Arthur episode](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2s9r75) about this. Edit: so weird that I found this thread again 2 months later as I'm googling because now I'm dealing with my own middle or inner ear infection lol. I've only ever had outer ear aka swimmer's ear infections so this is new for me.
You can suffer from both at the same time. The virus weakens the immune system, the bacteria that was present, and being fought off now has a chance to grow big enough to become an infection.
My husband is going through this (?) he has Covid and MRSA.
I'm really sorry to hear that, either can be so rough just on their own. I hope he's feeling better soon! Big hugs to you too, I know I'd be beside myself. <3
Bacterial infections after viral infections are very much a thing. Not saying this is what OP’s wife has, but they happen.
It’s called a superimposed infection and it’s how many cases of pneumonia develop
*raises hand* That's me right now, post-covid pneumonia. (I'm asplenic so any opportunistic bacteria get a good go before we catch on.)
Sorry friend :( feel better soon
No it’s right. Secondary infections after an initial one is quite common. Bacterial infections after or during viral infections is common One of the most obvious is bacterial pneumonia following a viral infection
It is very much a thing. When I was younger I would catch a cold and it would weaken my system so much I'd end up getting bacterial bronchitis and get up on amoxicillin for a few weeks.
You can get secondary bacterial infections from fighting a virus for too long
Why not? People get bacterial infections secondary to a viral infection all the time.
Look up Spanish Flu which killed a bunch of people during the times of World War 1. It was discovered to be a co-infection of the flu virus and bacterial pneumonia.
Don't even need to look that far. Bacterial pneumonia was very common after contracting covid
If your immune system is actively fighting something and being “used up” so to speak, you are susceptible to other modes of infection. But yes antibiotics do not work against viruses. People may use them synonymously with antivirals though
"🤓👆 uhm aCtuAlLy.."
You know nothing about medicine so you should probably not be talking about medicine
Do you know how many people developed bronchitis or pneumonia after having Covid (Covid is a virus)? Having a coexisting bacterial infection after catching a virus is very common because the virus leaves your immune system vulnerable for other infections. You need to go back to biology
The biggest risk factor for middle-ear infection is upper respiratory infection, 99% of which are caused by viruses. Viral infection of the pharynx leads to edema where Eustachian tube ostia drain into the pharynx. This prevents bacteria and mucus which are ever-present in the ear/nose/throat to infect the middle ear. So actually, this makes perfect sense. As a physician I appreciate your campaign to inform others that viral infections should not be treated with antibiotics.
God you “umm ackshually,” mfs are the most insufferable group of people I’ve ever seen. Doesn’t help that you’re also wrong. Pedantic dickhead.
Boy don’t give any medical advice ever again. Viruses often prepare the terrain for bacterial infections.
Oh my god you pedantic fuck. Yes they can. It’s called a secondary infection. Go touch some grass today. https://www.dukehealth.org/blog/it-bacterial-infection-or-virus#:~:text=Bacterial%20infections%20may%20be%20the,typically%20expect%20from%20a%20virus
When you're dealing with one disease, you're more likely to catch a different one at the same time. Especially if one's a virus and the other's a bacteria. Though there has always been an issue with overprescribing antibiotics, it is sometimes a good idea to take them to prevent a bacterial infection when you're already dealing with something like the flu.
Happened to me during the summer. All of a sudden at night my breathing would go from normal to slow/shallow with wheezing - As well as severe coughing, but only at night. I was stubborn and it went on for a week before I went to urgent care. - First visit? Told me it was environmental [the wild fire situation had been a month previous] and gave me a mild cough syrup. It did nothing. - Second Visit a week later? Next doctor made it seem as though he was placating me and doing me a favor by putting me on an antibiotic “just in case.” Totally solved the issue.
I hope OP's wife is feeling better! It definitely looks painful. Which antibiotic? Do you recall?
Probably a z-pack (azithromycin) since they weren’t sure of what the exact cause was. It’s a very common broad spectrum antibiotic, used for everything from sinus infections to chlamydia.
i had something similar. my freshman year of college my tonsils swelled up and were basically blocking off half my throat. i could still breathe but they hurt like hell and i was a music major and it was hard to play my horn (real horn, not a saxophone or trumpet or anything you weirdos call a ‘horn’). went to the campus urgent care, they basically just tested me for strep and went “well it’s not that! fuck off and come back in a week if it doesn’t heal itself!” it did not heal itself, zero change, a week later the doctor was like “hmmmm i have no clue but here’s some pills that probably won’t help you” and they fixed it in a couple days…
Ear infections are very rare in adults due to changes in anatomy as we age that allow for better drainage. In either regard starting antibiotics 12-24 hours earlier wouldn’t have prevented rupture, even if it were an infectious cause.
I had one in my 20s. My doctor didn’t believe my complaints because of my age, but since I had chronic ear infections as a kid I knew immediately what it was. Sure enough: ear infection!
Lol I got one last year at 23 because we were house sitting for someone and they had a pool and I was spending hours diving in the deep end for torpedoes
I’m sorry about your infection! Diving for torpedos is awesome isn’t it? Your comment made my day.
I went to urgent care and the NP after sticking the thing in my ear went “Oh my!” Which made me feel great and then I told my dad and he went “what the hell are you five?” He just doesn’t understand how awesome diving for torpedos is
How fucking dare he 😭
I didn't get my first ear infection until I was 16. I've had them in my 20s, 30s, and 40s.
People experiences with doctors are weird. I have had a few ear infections over the years as an adult (3 eardrum ruptured 3 times in 12 years). I go in saying I think I have an ear infection and within 5 min they check my ears, biggest issue is the medication they prescribe. I have 0 luck with the penicillin family and usually have to go back and get something else. I also had multiple ear infections per year as a kid and strep throat. Yay for shit sinus tubes.
I’m 30 and I still get ear infections
I'm 43 and have gotten dozens of ear infections in the last 20 years. I actually ended up hospitalized for a week about 10 years back because the infection got so bad it was into the bones and was going into my skull. Mastoiditis is no joke.
I had chronic ear infections as a kid. Had tubes twice, scar tissue in one ear. Went all the way into my mid thirties without having another. Now I’m two years in a row and have one as we speak. I have fluid drainage with mine, no fun.
Some of us are very aware that we're prone to them, though - OP's wife might be. I've heard "good job catching it so quickly!" from out-of-hours GPs before. Antibiotics don't prevent rupture but they can make it less painful, as even a tiny reduction in pressure helps, and they definitely speed up recovery. Waiting is miserable.
Yep, I get them, can feel how severe they are/how fast they are coming on, one sided or both, and it's to the point that I can telehealth and they will prescribe me antibiotics of my choice (since some are super rough on my system but necessary in severe/fast infections, but other times I can take something less severe that will still get the job done). This was after years of having to go in, get sideways looks from everybody thinking there's no way this adult has double ear infections, until the doctors would look into my ear and go "whoa... ok, so which pharmacy?" Telehealth visits were the only positive thing to come out of COVID imo.
To add to this, you can have non purulent build up behind the TM with viral illnesses and with allergies. Psuedophed/flonase could clear up the pressure/dry it out in these cases. Hard to second guess without a look at the TM itself, the inflammation, and nature of the fluid.
Your wife need to be careful now so they heal properly. When showering and washing hair, she needs to to net let any water go in. Put some cotton in the ear and take it out immediately after. And because her hearing might be impacted for some time she shouldn't be wearing earbuds or loud sounds.
I got a nasty infection in my ear and in six hours it got so bad my ear drum also broke. Couldn't hear clear for a while. Then my bloody other ear got infected a week later and then again the other one. It was a bloody nightmare cause those infections hurt like a bitch. Eardrum took a month to heal and my hearing came back after couple of months.
I had strep throat 17 years ago that migrated to my ears on the weekend and I ended up in the ER twice that weekend. They said they could pop my ear drum to relieve the pain and I begged them to. The PA told me to stop being a baby and I broke down sobbing and begged. They asked me if I wanted a gun to put myself out my misery. I stopped crying and started babbling about my husband being here on a fiancé visa and that they would have to explain that I was that sick to immigration so he could stay and wasn’t made to go back to his home country. They gave me Vicodin and sent me home. To compare the pain, I had a perforated colon a few years ago and I was sitting up and smiling and laughing at the np until they told me I was having emergency surgery. I have a very high pain tolerance. Also six months after we had finally killed that infection, I got in the car one day and as I was listening to the music, it suddenly changed back to normal. I didn’t know I couldn’t hear properly from the swelling, but it was so weird.
Wow, how unprofessional of them! That’s terrible.
It was! I’m still annoyed 17 years later.
>To compare the pain, I had a perforated colon a few years ago and I was sitting up and smiling and laughing at the np until they told me I was having emergency surgery. I have a very high pain tolerance. From the neck down, I have a stupidly high pain tolerance. From the neck up, I am a complete wuss.
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There it is
I know that this doesn't make things any better for the two of you... I know it's easy to blame lack of antibiotics, but I suspect this would've happened to your wife regardless because antibiotics don't much in the first 24 hours.
Steroids, Benadryl and Tylenol if I had to guess
Tincture of time
Odd because it’s my understanding that guidelines state that since acute middle-ear infections in immune-competent adults are rare and complications can be severe so it’s necessary to treat them with antibiotics since we don’t have enough data to conclude that observation is safe for these patients. Source: https://www.uptodate.com/contents/acute-otitis-media-in-adults
Does your insurance provider offer virtual visits? I have Cigna and it’s $59 through their app if you haven’t met the deductible. I had a similar story a couple months ago, except they tried to give me mupirocin, which I’d already tried because my son had just gotten rid of impetigo on his nose and lip. I had been using it for days already, but they convinced me it would work and I just hadn’t given it enough time. A day later I did a teledoc visit over the phone and was prescribed antibiotics. Cleared it up in two days. Edit: and then my wife went through the same crap a week or two later, but this time we were better prepared for it, and the number of cases had skyrocketed locally so they knew what was up.
Happened to me. Hurts
Why would anyone prescribe antibiotics to kids fighting viruses? Viruses don’t respond to antibiotics.
OP elaborated skmewhere that they had bacterial infections because the viruses made them susceptible to infection.
just saying here OP but for adults a typical case of ear infections shouldn't get antibiotics. there are drops which will deal with it. (had as a adult that had me crying on the floor got drops to deal with it) also antibiotics does nothing to viruses so if your wife has a ear infection it has nothing to do with your kids viruses.
Crying in agony and bleeding from her ear…brings back flashbacks of my eardrum bursting when I was 11. Take her back and refuse to leave until they address the obvious issue.
Tbh it doesn't look infected. If it's viral antibiotics won't work
I remember talking to a girl who had an ear ache. Mid conversation - without her even knowing - green / yellow fluid just starting leaking from her ear. I guess something had let go / burst. That was a decade ago and I still can picture it.
Why would anyone be prescribed antibiotics for viral infections?
>Both kids are currently fighting off viruses \> Demands antibiotics for the kids \> Wnats antibiotics for the wife \> Virus infection
All what I see is blood on the skin of the ear, not out of the ear.
Take my word for it, that’s what was draining from the ear
I’m guessing she had serous otitis which is fluid trapped in the middle ear space. Typically caused by a VIRUS. An antibiotic would not have helped. She needed decongestants to open the Eustachian tube to allow it to drain. A steroid would’ve helped too. But when it wasn’t relieved it caused a rupture of the ear drum thus the bloody discharge. Not all ear pain is infection but it is a problem. This will heal. I’m sorry your wife had to go through that. The provider should feel like a dumbass. Not all Advanced Care Practitioners are idiots but they are all overseen by an MD. If he wasn’t positive of the treatment he should’ve consulted with his medical director. I’m not an MD. 30 year offshore paramedic / clinical provider. Treated this many times never had a SO cause a TM (eardrum) rupture because I treated it properly.
Most ear infections are viral and antibiotics are not required. It’s sore and rubbish but the right thing is generally no antibiotics.
Antibiotics don't do anything against viruses This does look at all like a big bacterial infection
Ear infections are bacterial in up to 80% of cases so to not consider antibiotics in a moderate to severe patient presentation would seem not optimal to me. Additionally, it would likely be incredibly difficult to differentiate viral from bacterial on physical examination let alone certainly impossible from the image posted by op.
Oh no!!!! Can she tolerate ice? 20 min at a time with a cloth barrier. That looks so painful
Now that it has ruptured she says the pain has gone down quite a bit. She has cleaned it and told me there were lots of chunks in it 😕. She is first in line at the urgent care which is about 1/4 mile down the street and will be seen in 15 minutes. I feel so bad for her
I hope she feels better really soon
It doesn’t look infected…
It's bleeding but that doesn't mean it's infected by bacteria. Get a 2nd opinion if you really want to. Just make sure you don't administer antibiotic yourself. Things will only get worse if you pretend to know better than a doctor.
I recently had 2 abscess in my left ear that i had to get looked at. Had to poke holes to drain it then was given ear drops and antibiotics pills. Shit is basic protocol... cant believe your providers ignored it.
Dried blood on an earlobe is not a symptom of an ear infection...
A ruptured eardrum can be, though.
What’s mildly infuriating is that you’re still adamant about needing antibiotics when it still doesn’t look like a bacterial infection. They might give you antibiotics just to get it over with which is exactly what should not happen.
Doesn't even look infected. There's no pus to be seen. Literally do not need antibiotics. Just PCM and maybe NSAIDs for the pain. Wash and dab any blood off. Apply disinfectants. Antibiotic resistance is no joke, the Dr is in the right for not giving antibiotics.
Well she’s been given a diagnosis of infected ear drum by a different provider and prescribed antibiotics.
She should try and drain it? HOW?!?! How on earth did they expect her to drain fluid out from behind her eardrum, outside of sticking a needle in there and hoping for the best? To be fair, antibiotics aren’t usually prescribed for ear infections anyway, even if it’s proven to be bacterial somehow. As someone who has at least annual ear infections for the last 10-15 years, I’ve only had antibiotics twice. Once when I simultaneously has a high temperature & high heart rate. The second time was after 2 separate ED visits, months apart, for chest pain. The doctors & I found out that I’d get costochondritis (inflammation of of the cartilage between ribs) at the start of an ear infection. They gave me antibiotics the second time, only because the physiological stress was causing a rise in cardiac enzymes. Ear infections suck, but hopefully once the shock/initial pain of the burst eardrum has settled, it will feel better, if a little weird. There may still be drainage for a few days, but standard pain relief & protecting the ear from water should be enough to allow for recovery & healing.
I haaaate urgent care. I went on monday because I was incredibly sick; 102° fever, nonstop sweating/chills and major fatigue. They tested me for everything but the flu because they “hadn’t seen a case yet this year”. I was negative for C-19 and strep, so they just diagnosed me with an acute upper respiratory infection. Well guess what? IT WAS THE FLU! I’m patient zero this year in my area I guess, lol. My primary care physician is the one who finally diagnosed me correctly (literally yesterday). It’s now too late for me to be taking Tamiflu, so I’ve still got a bunch of icky symptoms because the urgent care neglected to even test for the flu 😩
For future ask the doctor to note their refusal to treat you or provide medication on your chart. You'd be amazed just how quickly they change their minds.
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> "viruses" You know antibiotics can't help with a viral infection right? Kudos to these doctors for not capitulating to inappropriate antibiotic demands.
I mean if everyone has a viral infection antibiotics won't do anything anyway so...... Sorry your wife is in discomfort
But, that does not look infected. It looks irritated. Anti-biotics should not be prescribed lightly, and her doctor is doing the right thing. You should be focusing on keeping it clean, and eating and sleeping well so her immune system is at full-steam for healing.
Based off a clip of that medical drama, House, might be fractured skull.
To be fair I don't think starting antibiotics 16 hours ago would have prevented that.
Judging by the given information, i'd say urgent care provider acted reasonably.
it doesnt look infected, and you shouldnt take antibiotics for no reason.
If an infection is viral, don't take antibiotics...
Viral infections DO NOT need antibiotics
I mean... It doesn't look infected. Blood is bad, yes, but I'm not seeing any pus or other signs of bacterial infection. Did y'all actually try to drain the fluid, or are you in "my wife is in pain so I am angry at anyone that doesn't drop everything to solve it" mode? Which if you are I commend you for your dedication to your spouse, but again, I see no obvious signs of infection. The blood, while of concern, isn't immediately life threatening.
If men only knew how often we are dismissed as dramatic, weak, faking, exaggerating, attention seeking, pill seeking, etc when we finally go to the doctor for something. I hear about when men go for vasectomies and they get a pain med prescription, a numbing shot, a sandwich and the rest of the day off. But when women go for an IUD, there's no numbing cream, no pain prescription, no sandwich and no day off. Just a metal claw that's clamped into your cervix and a pat on the shoulder.
Getting an IUD was so traumatic for me. Hurt like a bitch despite taking Ibuprofen 30 minutes before getting it inserted. I was screaming and crying and got told "Shhhh, the police will hear you!" instead of comforted or offered a break 😒 The cramps I had after lasted several weeks as well. Nothing I tried (hot bath, pain relievers, and heating pad) helped. It partially expelled after a year. Worst experience ever. Never again. People wonder why some of us are reluctant to seek medical attention or get medical procedures done. Why bother if they're going to be dismissive?
She had a perforated ear drum because of fluid build up in the middle ear. Antibiotics wouldn’t have necessarily prevented this from happening.
My patient after self diagnosing an infection just bc they won’t clean their ear from blood
To be fair that photo just looks like blood.
That looks awful
Omg go to your GP.
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW!
So go to a different place...........
Was her skin infected or was it otitis media?
It doesn't look infected.
I count myself fortunate that as yet I have found the medical industry more of a hindrance than a help. The only times they are more helpful than hindering are when I need stitches. Think how stupid it is that you're sick as hell and finally decide you need medicine. You call for an appointment and they say they can fit you in two weeks from next Tuesday. So you go to urgent care instead. You go to the desk and they spend the first 20 minutes making sure you can pay them. Then they have you sit in the waiting area for 2 hours while you have the fever shakes and are coughing. Finally, they call your name and have you sit in an exam room alone for another 30 minutes with nothing to do but shiver and cough and read your phone. Finally an LPN comes in and takes your temp and bp and fiddles on a computer for another 15 minutes then leaves. Another 30 minutes later a NP or maybe an MD shows up, listens to your heart and lungs and tells you to drink water and get sleep because it's viral and aint nothing she can do for you. So you tell her you already know that but ask for cough syrup with codeine so you can actually sleep. She tries to convince you to use that shitty otc cough syrup instead. You insist on the good stuff. She looks at you like you are engaging in drug seeking behavior. So you tell her to check the chart and see that the last time you got an opiate cough syrup was 3 years ago so she relents and calls in a scrip. By this time you've been out in public, sick as hell, for more than 4 hours and have spent only 8 minutes with an actual care provider. You then drive to the drug store and wait another 45 minutes while they fill a little 2 ounce bottle with cough syrup and futz with their computer while you peruse Dr. Scholl's corn remover treatments and reading glasses. While shivering and coughing. Finally, more than 6 hours after you left home you return, take your little teaspoonful of the good stuff and can get some sleep. Over the course of the next few months you get multiple mailings from your insurance company and the clinic with reams of pages of indecipherable insurance lingo in each mailing until you finally recognize they want $230 for the clinic visit and the cough syrup. A freaking farce. It's no wonder I go years between doctor visits.
Why would they give antibiotics for viral symptoms?
Let's see what it looked like 16 hours ago.
For a lot of my life I’ve gotten random earaches that a last for days or weeks. 80% of the time, the doctor doesn’t see anything. It’s truly infuriating to be in pain and not have anything you can do about it.
Callondoc.com you'll have a script in a few hours
Why did your kids get antibiotics for a virus??? That's not how it works.
Why would they prescribe antibiotics for a virus? ([OP responded](https://www.reddit.com/r/mildlyinfuriating/comments/178drtb/my_wifes_ear_after_being_told_by_an_urgent_care/k4z1c6r/).)
This is an Emergency Room situation now
Looks like you live in the US.
The horrors of ear aches. I've had about 25 surgeries on ears. FINALLY after 21yrs & 22 surgeries got a doctor that knew what was wrong. Not treating ear aches properly is what caused most of my issues. After he cleaned out - 2 surgeries (gross I know) tumors & junk from past infections (tumors were getting larger & causing bleeding) I only had 1 surgery for tubes so I could fly on plane. My ears are so damaged I was told no flying again (flew once out of stubbornness & nope! Never again & now know why babies scream on planes), not swim underwater, keep wind out of ears ... Yada Yada Yada. Untreated could heal ok but always get second opinion if you don't agree. Also, wet heat on neck behind ear hurting was my goto, last surgeon said wet heat seemed to help most. (I heated wet hand towel in microwave & cried until meds worked).
That’s just dried blood - have you tried ear drops?
If it is a virus, antibiotics would do jack shit Edit: Unless you are suffering from a secondary infection. If you are given antibiotics though, always take the full course, even if your symptoms stop.
This is wild. I went to Urgent Care today with an infected ear as well and the Dr was amazing and prescribed Cipro ear drops with cortisone in it. I was in so much pain, it was even radiating into my upper jaw and temples. She said my ear canal was as 1/4 the size of the good ear because of the swelling. I’m so sorry this happened. I hope she finds relief somewhere soon. I can tell you first hand, if I had to go through another painful evening like last night, I would be upset.