Otitis media is an inflammatory disease of the middle ear caused by a bacterial or viral infection that involves all or part of the middle ear (including the eustachian tube, tympanic sinus, and mastoid airspace). There are three routes of invasion into the middle ear: through the eustachian tube, the external auditory canal or the primary middle ear, with the eustachian tube route causing the most common infections. Chronic otitis media is often caused by chronic lesions in the nasopharynx and delayed treatment of acute otitis media. Symptoms of otitis media 1. Earache: When secondary infection occurs, there may be pulsating throbbing pain or stabbing pain that may radiate to the ipsilateral head or teeth, and the earache worsens when swallowing and coughing. 2. Tinnitus: It can be intermittent, and the sound of air passing water can be heard. 3.Ear stuffiness: in acute cases, there is obstruction and dizziness in the ear, while in chronic cases, there is only a feeling of obstruction. 4.Hearing loss: the ear feels stuffy at the beginning, followed by hearing loss, and deafness can be ignored if the ear pain is severe. 5.If tympanic membrane perforation is caused, there may be blood and water-like purulent discharge. After perforation, deafness and pain are reduced instead. 6. In the acute stage, there is fever, loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, etc. 3. How to prevent otitis media? Incorrect nose-blowing methods can also lead to otitis media. Some people tend to use two fingers to pinch both sides of the nose when blowing the nose and forcefully blow out the snot. This method of blowing the nose not only fails to completely blow the nose but is also very dangerous, as the nose contains a large number of viruses and bacteria, and if both nostrils are pinched and blown hard, the pressure forces the nose to squeeze out the posterior nostril, reaching the eustachian tube and causing otitis media. Therefore, the correct way to blow the nose should be advocated: press one nostril with your finger and blow the nasal snot out of the opposite nostril with a little force, and then blow the other side with the same method. If the nasal cavity is blocked and the snot is not easy to blow out, you can first use chloroma nose drops and then blow the nose after the nasal cavity is aerated. When swimming, avoid swallowing water into the mouth so that the water does not enter the middle ear through the nasopharynx and cause otitis media. Any watery liquid drops are forbidden for tympanic membrane perforation due to trauma to avoid affecting the healing of the wound, and sterile cotton balls can be used to block the external ear canal to avoid infection induced otitis media. If an infant is breastfed in the supine position, milk may choke into the middle ear via the eustachian tube and cause otitis media because the eustachian tube is relatively straight, and the lumen is short and the inner diameter is wide. Therefore, the mother should take a sitting position when breastfeeding her child, holding the baby in an oblique position with the head upright and sucking milk.