Children often suffer from many diseases as infants and toddlers, and otitis media is one of them. Parents are wondering how their babies can get otitis media. What is the cause? The following parents have such doubts, let’s take a look.
Several bad habits make babies suffer from otitis media.
1. Pinching the nose
Parents want their babies to look good and cute, and for babies with “collapsed” noses, parents always feel that often pinching their little noses can transform the nose shape and make the nose “straight”. However, it turns out that the small action of lifting and pinching the little nose is likely to lead to acute purulent otitis media in babies. The nose is so far away from the ear, how to pinch out the otitis media?
Analysis: Adults often pinch the child’s nose, which may damage the mucous membrane and blood vessels of the nasal cavity, reducing the defense function of the nasal cavity itself, increasing the chances of bacterial and viral infections, and easily causing middle ear inflammation by squeezing the secretions in the nasal cavity and invading the tympanic chamber through the eustachian tube.
2.Laying down to breastfeed
Some mothers with insufficient milk will use milk powder to remedy the common sense that the development of artificially fed children is not inferior to that of breast-fed children of the same age. In fact, artificial feeding and breast-fed babies are not very different, but mothers must pay attention to the action of feeding, if the usual habit of lying down to feed, then the baby is very likely to suffer from otitis media!
Analysis: small baby gastrointestinal development is not perfect, plus swallow some air when eating, so in the feeding process or soon after feeding, often regurgitate, resulting in the esophagus or stomach food back into the throat, mouth or nasal cavity. If the child is lying down at this time, these contaminated refluxes can easily invade the ear through the eustachian tube, causing inflammation of the mucous membrane in the ear.
3. Blow your nose indiscriminately
Once a baby has rhinitis, his nose increases and parents often blow his nose, but did you know that? This is likely to make the baby suffer from otitis media, because of the improper method of blowing the nose caused by the disaster.
Analysis: Many mothers blow their child’s nose in an incorrect way, often using two fingers to pinch both sides of the nose and forcefully blow the snot out. Since both sides of the child’s nostrils are pinched, the way out of the nose is blocked, and it is forced by external force to spray out to the posterior nasal orifice and invade the middle ear through the eustachian tube, where bacteria and viruses take advantage of the opportunity to multiply and cause inflammation. According to statistics, about 1/3 of children with otitis media are “created” in this way.
4.Pacifier abuse
Many new mothers love to use a “comfort pacifier” without a bottle to let their children sleep quietly. But the bad news is that after a while, the child inexplicably gets a middle ear infection, forcing her to give up the pacifier.
Analysis: After surveying 100 children between the ages of half a year and one and a half years, it was found that babies who used a pacifier for six consecutive months were more than 30% more likely to develop otitis media than non-users. The reason for this is that the child’s frequent sucking action makes it easy for germs to sneak into the eustachian tube from the back of the nasal cavity, which can lead to middle ear inflammation.
As a parent, you must take care of your baby’s otitis media properly.
1. Using a bottle to give your baby for milk powder is the easiest way for your baby to get otitis media. It is easy to let the milk flow into the baby’s ears when the baby is lying down to drink, so it is recommended that mothers try to use breastfeeding or hold the baby to breastfeed.
2. Using a soother for a long time can also lead to otitis media in babies.
3. Avoid catching a cold if your baby has otitis media, as a cold can increase the likelihood of otitis media occurring.
4. Allow your baby to get enough sleep and sleep with your head elevated to reduce the swelling caused by congestion in the ear canal.
5, when the baby has a fever, also give the baby more timely hydration, because the fever will make the baby’s body water through the fever and dissipate, and in the baby’s hydration should be supplemented with some substantial water solution, such as honey water, milk, etc., rather than plain water diuretic solution, but will consume energy.
6. cut the baby’s nails, the baby will have earache and ear discomfort, the baby too young to express it, may show restlessness or go to pull the infected ear, the nails should be cut short to avoid the baby scratching and digging the ear.
7. Watch over your baby at all times. When your baby has otitis media, you should make sure that there is a parent around at all times to watch over your baby, as he or she may experience nausea and vomiting. If the eardrum is perforated, there will be secretions coming out. If the otitis media is already chronic, the eardrum will thicken and scar, the eardrum will decrease in activity or even produce a cholesteatoma in the middle ear cavity, and parents should take their baby to the doctor again in time to see if surgery is needed.
Tips: There are many types of otitis media, and the symptoms are not uniform. Parents should closely observe their child’s hearing response and seek early treatment at the hospital once suspicious symptoms appear. This is something that parents should pay attention to in their daily lives.