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Many parents unaware that earaches may linger after pain is gone

When a child tells you his ear no longer aches, it doesn't necessarily mean the ear infection is actually gone.

Excluding the obvious symptom — pain — earaches can be difficult to detect, Irving Hall, M.D., noted during the Spring Session. What may seem like a simple earache actually can be more serious than the common cold. And neglecting an earache, he cautioned, could lead to serious hearing loss.

Dr.Hall reported that many parents bring children to pediatricians with earaches and start the prescribed medication, but stop giving it when the child says the pain is gone. Although the "ache" often goes away in two or three days, it may take up to two weeks for antibiotics to rid the ear infection.