otitis

Inflammation of the ear. Otitis externa, occurring in the outer ear canal, is easily treated with antibiotics. Inflamed conditions of the middle ear (otitis media) or inner ear (otitis interna) are more serious, carrying the risk of deafness and infection of the brain. Treatment is with antibiotics or, more rarely, surgery. A 1999 US survey of children's middle-ear problems indicated that the risk is, to a large extent, hereditary.