{"id":3410,"date":"2023-09-15T12:00:48","date_gmt":"2023-09-15T18:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/delreymd.com\/?p=3410"},"modified":"2026-02-08T18:52:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T02:52:09","slug":"chronic-ear-infections-causes-and-treatment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.delreymd.com\/delrey2026stage\/blog\/chronic-ear-infections-causes-and-treatment\/","title":{"rendered":"Chronic Ear Infections: Causes and Treatment"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3411\" title=\"chronic ear infections\" src=\"http:\/\/delreymd.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/chronic-ear-infections-300x200.jpeg\" alt=\"chronic ear infections\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" \/>An ear infection is caused by fluid or bacteria trapped in your middle ear. When someone repeatedly gets an ear infection, or their ear infection seems to clear up and come back again, it is known as chronic otitis media, or chronic middle ear infection.<\/p>\n<p>At Del Rey, MD, patients with this issue receive expert care from an experienced ENT who can find the underlying cause for their symptoms. Before you can treat an ear infection successfully, it\u2019s important to understand what causes these\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/delreymd.com\/ear-conditions\/\">chronic ear infections<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Chronic Ear Infection Causes<\/h2>\n<p>Middle-ear infections are caused by fluid building up in the eustachian tube, a passage that runs from the middle ear to the throat. There are several possible causes of chronic or repeat ear infections, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Untreated sinusitis<\/li>\n<li>Allergies<\/li>\n<li>A bacterial infection<\/li>\n<li>Viruses like the cold or influenza<\/li>\n<li>Repeat upper respiratory infection<\/li>\n<li>Ear trauma<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Chronic ear infections are more common among infants due to their developing immune systems and higher susceptibility to infection. Their smaller eustachian tubes are also in a more horizontal position than adults\u2019.<\/p>\n<h2>Treatment Options<\/h2>\n<p>Chronic or long-lasting ear infections indicate a deeper problem that likely needs professional care to fully resolve. Reaching out to an ENT can help find the right solution for you. Possible treatments include:<\/p>\n<h3>Antibiotic Medication<\/h3>\n<p>If the doctor can determine your ear infection is caused by a bacterial infection, they may prescribe a course of antibiotics to help the immune system fight off the infection-causing bacteria and heal.<\/p>\n<h3>Ear Drops<\/h3>\n<p>Ear drops can help soothe pain, reduce swelling and inflammation, and improve fluid drainage. This is easy to do at home and can be a good solution for patients who have not seen improvement waiting for symptoms to abate on their own.<\/p>\n<h3>Allergy Management<\/h3>\n<p>Patients whose chronic ear infections are caused by allergies can benefit from personalized treatment to get their symptoms under control, reduce inflammation, and decrease their chance of infection.<\/p>\n<h3>Surgical Treatment<\/h3>\n<p>In severe cases, the ENT may recommend patients receive a surgical procedure called bilateral myringotomy to reduce the frequency and severity of chronic ear infections.<\/p>\n<h2>Schedule an ENT Appointment Today<\/h2>\n<p>If over-the-counter pain relief and at-home remedies do not work, it\u2019s best to seek out the care of a knowledgeable ENT near you. Del Rey, MD provides treatment for chronic ear infections to patients throughout Marina Del Rey, Los Angeles, Bakersfield, and Long Beach, CA. Please\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/delreymd.com\/contact\/\">contact Del Rey, MD<\/a>, today at (310) 823-4444 to schedule an appointment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An ear infection is caused by fluid or bacteria trapped in your middle ear. When someone repeatedly gets an ear infection, or their ear infection seems to clear up and come back again, it is known as chronic otitis media, or chronic middle ear infection. At Del Rey, MD, patients with this issue receive expert<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.delreymd.com\/delrey2026stage\/blog\/chronic-ear-infections-causes-and-treatment\/\" class=\"more\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-ear-conditions"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Chronic Ear Infections: Common Causes and Treatment<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ear infections can be caused by sinusitis, ear trauma, allergies, viral and bacterial infections.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" 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