Anthritis (Otoanthritis)

Antritis is an inflammation of the walls of the antrum and surrounding tissues. It occurs in infants, more often in premature infants with malnutrition, and in those weakened by various diseases.

Symptoms and course

The disease can occur with a pronounced clinical picture (long-term toxicosis, rapid decline in the child’s body weight) or latent. Otoscopic data are scarce: the eardrum is dim, identification points are poorly defined.

The child is drowsy or, on the contrary, restless, often cries, sleeps and eats poorly, and loses weight. The skin becomes pale gray or cyanotic, heart sounds are muffled, and the pulse is rapid. The stool is loose, the body temperature is elevated (38-39 °C), but more often low-grade or even normal.

In the blood - leukocytosis (neutrophilia), shift of the formula to the left.

Diagnostics

The diagnosis is helped by tympanopuncture, trial paracentesis, anthropopuncture, and x-ray examination.

Treatment

Antibiotic therapy is carried out with mandatory determination of the sensitivity of microflora to antibiotics. Injections of penicillin into the area of ​​the posterosuperior wall of the external auditory canal have a good effect.

For toxicosis, gamma globulin, dry plasma transfusion, and intravenous infusion of glucose solution are used.

If anthropuncture with the introduction of penicillin into the antrum does not have an effect, then anthrotomy is performed under local anesthesia.