How does chiropractic care help with ear infections?

Speaking from experience, ear infections suck.  Anyone who has experience them personally or watched their child suffer the excruciating pain knows how miserable they can be.  Ear infections, also known as Otitis Media, are one of the most common childhood illnesses.

Many parents have seen the positive impact chiropractic care can have in helping alleviate the symptoms and help prevent recurrent bouts of ear infections.  In my clinical and personal experience I have seen the symptoms of ear infections rapidly improve after receiving chiropractic adjustments and a decrease in recurrent flare ups.

What Causes Ear Infections

Ear infections (aka Otitis Media) are caused by a collection of fluid behind the ear drum and often develop after respiratory infections or in association with seasonal allergies.  The drainage tube of the ear (the Eustachian tube) can be choked off due to inflammation or tight muscles,  resulting in fluid building up in the ear. Fluid and/or pus fills the area and pushes on the ear drum from the inside causing intense pain.

The medicinal approach will likely vary from watch and wait to prescribing antibiotics to surgically inserting tubes in the ears for recurrent infections.  Yet many people are looking for a more natural approach and are turning to chiropractic instead of traditional allopathic resources for their children.

How does chiropractic care help with ear infections?

The basic chiropractic approach to otitis media would be summarized as follows:

• The muscles surrounding the Eustachian Tube, the channel which allows drainage of fluid (pus) from the middle ear to the back of the throat, are controlled by the nerves from top of the neck.
• If the spinal bones are restricted in this region you can get muscle tightness which will pinch the eustachian tube, preventing normal drainage, allow for bacterial/viral infection and increasing the pressure on the ear drum (sharp pain) and inner ear (balance).
• Chiropractic adjustments cause a relaxation effect to the muscles surrounding the eustachian tubes by removing pressure on the nerves which exit the back of the skull and upper neck.

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Is the chiropractic approach more effective?

In a recent study by PubMed it concludes that Chiropractic care is MORE effective and reduces symptoms faster than allopathic care.  The results showed that 93% of all episodes improved, 75% in 10 days or fewer and 43% with only one or two treatments.  In another recent study conducted by the American Chiropractic Association, 80% of children who were treated with chiropractic care were ear infection free for at least 6 months after care.

Prevalence of Ear Infections

These ear infections are most common in children 6 years old and younger and peak around 2 years of age.  Before the age of 2 years, 94% of children will have had at least 1 episode of otitis media.  A child’s eustachian tube is more horizontal than an adult’s which takes away from the effects of gravity to help in the drainage.

Signs and Symptoms of Ear Infections

The primary symptoms include soreness, pain and discomfort in the area surrounding the ear as well as: fever, fluid draining, trouble sleeping, loss of appetite and grumpy behavior.  Some signs that parents should be aware of to indicate that their children have fluid accumulating in their middle ear includes:

• Popping or ringing in the ear.
• Pressure buildup. Young children unable to communicate this will oftentimes rub their ears trying to relieve the uncomfortable feeling.
• Difficulty hearing.
• Balance problems, in-coordination and dizziness.
• Fever

References:

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/statistics/Pages/quick.aspx

J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 1996 Mar-Apr;19(3):169-77.

The effect of the correction of the vertebral subluxation on chronic otitis media in children. Heagy, DT Chiropractic Pediatrics, 1996; 2/2:6-7.

The role of the chiropractic adjustment in the care and treatment of 332 children with otitis media. Fallon, JM. Journal of Clinical Chiropractic Pediatrics Oct 1997, 2(2):167-183.

Chiropractic care of 401 children with otitis media: a pilot study. Fallon and Edelman. Alternative Therapies March 1998 4(2):93