4. Bacterial Infection
Bacterial middle ear infections are far more severe in the intensity of symptoms and the duration. While viral otitis media typically start to fade away by itself after 48 to 72-hours, bacterial infections to this region of the body can persist for weeks, and lead to some unsavory complications for the infected individual.
Some of the strains responsible for causing otitis media includes;
Streptococcus pneumoniae — Responsible for between 40 to 80-percent of all middle ear infections.
Haemophilus influenza — The second leading cause of otitis media accounting for 20 to 30-percent of all cases.
Moraxella catarrhalis — A less common strain, responsible for 10 to 20-percent of all middle ear infections.
Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes – these bacteria are the outliers for causing otitis media infection, but there are cases involving this bacteria, especially when it migrates from the throat through the Eustachian tube.
Doctors will treat bacterial infections using antibiotics, and the patient should make a full recovery without any lasting damage to the ear.