Help! Ear infection that won't go away!

My 8 year son has had an ear infection for 5 weeks now. We've gone through a course of Ciprodex otic drops and a course of  Neomycin/Polymyxin B ear drops. He's also been on Keflex and Augmentin. The doctor keeps telling me it's "swimmer's ear" or "just an ear infection" and should go away soon. 5 weeks of dealing with my child hurting is not soon enough. I'm actually a pediatic RN and know that this is not normal. A couple of nights, the ear drops would not even go in the ear canal.  His ear canal has a fuzzy, white appearance to it. I'm waiting on an appt with his ENT for next week.  He has a history of asthma and severe GERD. This is the first ear infection that we have dealt with since he was 18 months old. Can anyone offer any advice?

[Paderla Anitha, DNB]

Hello and hope you are doing well.

It looks like an infection of the ear canals. Ear canals can get swollen due to infections when it is referred to as otitis externa. The infecting agents are bacteria, fungi and viral. Bacterial infections need antibiotics and fungal anti fungal agents. Viral infections are by exclusion and do not need any antibiotic therapy. Ear canals can also get swollen due to allergies or injuries.

Since it is not responding to antibiotics, it could be a fungal infection. Discuss these options with your consulting doctor.

Hope this helped and do keep us posted.