What is Mastoiditis, Symptoms and Causes

 

What is Mastoiditis, Symptoms and Causes-Mastoiditis is a serious infection in the mastoid process, which is the hard, prominent bone just behind and under the ear. Ear infections that people fail to treat cause most cases of mastoiditis. The condition is rare but can become life-threatening without treatment.

Symptoms of mastoiditis include swelling behind the ear, pus coming out of the ear, throbbing pain, and difficulty hearing.

Ear infections that do not receive treatment, as well as antibiotic-resistant ear infections, sometimes spread. When this happens, the bacteria travel to surrounding structures, including bones such as the mastoid process.

Without antibiotic treatment, the bacteria can continue spreading to the bones of the skull. They may also travel to the blood and organs, including the brain.

Middle ear infections, which doctors call acute otitis media, and mastoiditis are most common in children younger than 2 years of age.

Symptoms of mastoiditis

Mastoiditis can begin after symptoms of an ear infection seem to have cleared up. It may also appear as a progressively worsening ear infection.

When a person develops new symptoms within a few weeks of an ear infection, a doctor may assess them to see if they have mastoiditis.

Symptoms include:

·         intense throbbing pain in or around the ear

·         pus or other fluids coming out of the ear

·         fever or chills

·         swelling behind or under the ear

·         redness behind the ear

·         a bad smell coming from the ear

·         an ear that appears to be sticking out or pushed forward

·         hearing problems or ringing in the ears

People should look out for the following signs in very young children who might be unable to describe their symptoms:

·         mood changes

·         frequent crying

·         hitting the side of the head

·         pulling on the ears

In some people, the swelling that mastoiditis causes is intermittent or gets better and then worse. It is important not to assume that an infection is healing just because symptoms improve slightly.

Without treatment, mastoiditis can cause infections in the skull, the blood, or the organs. People can also develop a life-threatening blood infection called sepsis.

A person with mastoiditis or an ear infection who has confusion, a high fever, is very weak, or who has swelling around their head should go to the emergency room.

Causes of mastoiditis

Ear infections are the most common cause of mastoiditis.

When a person does not receive antibiotics for mastoiditis, the bacteria can spread. If people stop taking antibiotics too soon, this can also allow the infection to spread.

Some people can develop antibiotic-resistant infections that spread even with antibiotic treatment.

A person may, less commonly, have an abnormal growth of skin cells in the middle ear called a cholesteatoma.

This skin growth can cause a blockage in the ear that allows bacteria to multiply, causing mastoiditis. Cholesteatomas can also cause ear polyps that may result in further obstruction.