Watchful waiting is best practice in most cases of Acute Otitis Media. Do you know the ins and outs of its indications/contraindications?
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1. Counselling Conundrum: a real question from a patient
2. Concise Conclusion: a straight-forward patient-friendly answer
3. Quick Wrap-up
Clearly, there are nuances that may not be captured in this format. The goal here is to provide you with helpful counselling tips which often draw from multiple sources or those which are not commonly accessed by busy healthcare providers serving the community.

Counselling Conundrum: "My 3 year old has an ear infection, but the Doctor said it was mild, only in one ear, and uncomplicated, so she said not to give my child the antibiotic unless they worsen. Is this right?
Concise Conclusion: The Doctor is correct. As much as it's uncomfortable to wait, the best thing to do is to watch for worsening for the next 48 hours before taking an antibiotic. Most milder infections like these are cleared by our bodies on their own and antibiotics are unnecessary.
Quick Wrap-up: We don't recommend watchful waiting if:
-the child is 6 months old or younger
-the infection is moderate or severe (fever of 39 degrees Celsius or higher, significant otalgia or otalgia lasting 48 h or longer, ear drainage, vomiting, bilateral especially if 2 years old or younger)
-the infection is complicated (ear infection in past month, acute facial nerve palsy, mastoiditis, labyrinthitis)
-the patient or parent cannot access clinician and are not capable of recognizing worsening illness
Dive Deeper
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