Mastoiditis is an infection of the mastoid bone of the skull.
Causes, incidence, and risk factors:
Mastoiditis is usually a consequence of a middle ear infection (acute otitis media). The infection may spread from the ear to the mastoid bone of the skull. The mastoid bone fills with infected materials and its honeycomb-like structure may deteriorate.
Mastoiditis most commonly affects children. Before antibiotics, mastoiditis was one of the leading causes of death in children. Now it is a relatively uncommon and much less dangerous disorder.
An examination of the head may indicate mastoiditis. A skull X-ray or head CT scan or CT of the ear may show an abnormality in the mastoid bone. A culture of drainage from the ear may show bacteria.
Review Date: 2/19/2007
Reviewed By: Alden J. Pearl, M.D., Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Otolaryngology, State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.
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General ENT
