Toddlers more prone to infection thanks to their shorter ear canals

AS if suffering with one of those niggly colds wasn’t bad enough.

My patient was a wee boy aged 18 months and he’d just been through a bit of a miserable head cold.

As it wore on, his mum had noticed a discharge from his ear and brought him in for me to have a look.

It was otitis media, which might sound like an Italian television company but is in fact an infection of the middle ear – the wee space behind the ear drum.

It’s the area housing the three bones which turn sound into vibrations, better known as the hammer, anvil and stirrup.

Usually this space is filled with air, and has a tiny canal that runs down into the back of the throat. During a cold, though, this area may fill with mucus, which can become infected with a virus or bacteria.

Hearing becomes muffled and then the inflamed middle ear causes earache and a temperature, sometimes with vomiting.

Occasionally, the eardrum perforates – as with my patient – and then the ear discharges.

Middle ear infection is more common in children under two – their wee hearing canals are shorter, which makes them more prone to infection.

A baby with otitis media may be just hot and irritable.

In adults and older children, I’d normally let otitis media clear up by itself with painkillers, but complications are more likely under the age of two, so I prescribed my young patient a course of antibiotics.

There is evidence that children who are breast-fed and live in a smoke-free home are less likely to develop middle ear infections – so bear that in mind.