Ear pain is simply over treated or under treated. Mostly it is treated over the counter using some antibiotic ear drops. But the adverse effects of this treatment, patients don't realize. Then what to do? so if you have ear pain, do a otoscopic examination and then see for any perforation in the ear drum and then treat accordingly. Sometimes a boil in the ear canal may produce ear pain. If a patient is a diabetic, then malignant otitis externa to be kept in mind.