I've Had An Ear Infection For 5 Days. On Sunday

Posted on Tue, 9 Jun 2020

Question: I've had an ear infection for 5 days. On Sunday (Day 3), I went to the doctor with moderate pain and was diagnosed with a middle ear infection in my left ear. I was given a shot of rocephin and was prescribed amoxicillin to treat it. I have also been taking ibuprofen and Tylenol to relieve pain. Over the past 2 days of antibiotics, my pain has been minor with the pain relieving drugs and moderate without it. I've taken 4 pills since seeing the doctor. Today a 3:30 AM, I woke up with severe pain and pressure in my left ear, the worst of the entire infection. I had not taken any ibuprofen or Tylenol the night before going to bed. I know it's only Day 3 of taking amoxicillin, and that it may need 72 hours to actually make a difference. But with how the pain had been worse after taking the antibiotics, I'm starting to doubt if the amoxicillin is actually doing anything, or if I can even afford to wait another day to find out.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Rajat Basak (7 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Hii. Welcome to the healthcare services. You are having acute otitis media

Detailed Answer:
Hii. Welcome to the healthcare services. You are having acute otitis media or acute middle ear infection. This infection has its own course of disease progression. It seems that there is accumulation of pus in the middle ear. This pus may get released outside middle ear through any perforation in your ear drum. This can cause ear pain. This is a process by which accumulated pus get released. It can happen even after starting antibiotic. You continue amoxycillin or start augmentin which is amoxycillin and clavulanic acid combination. Take levocetrizine which will reduce allergic inflammation. Take paracetamol for pain management. Take nasoclear nose drop which will keep your nose healthy. It will help in healing your ear. No need to panic. Both amoxycillin or augmentin are one of the most prescribed drug. You can send an ear swab for culture and sensitivity to microbiology. Please review if you have any queries.

Note: Consult an experienced Otolaryngologist / ENT Specialist online for further follow up on ear, nose, and throat issues - Book a Call now.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Kampana