Can you help?

You need to get your GP to check this out. There are a number of conditions that cause intense earache and dizziness. Most are related to an infection in the middle ear, which is the part behind the eardrum.

In many cases, treatment is quite simple and can relieve most of the symptoms within a week or so. If the cause is a bacterial infection, antibiotics with decongestant therapy can give good relief. If the dizziness is a troublesome feature, there are a number of medicines to settle this. However, one or two viruses can cause the same symptoms and need a different approach altogether.

One virus, the same one that causes cold sores and shingles, causes the nerve that runs to the ear canal to become inflamed and so causes pain, but it can also cause other symptoms including altered taste or some weakness of the facial muscles on the painful side.

Can you tell me whether taking Prednisolone tablets can cause weight gain?

Prednisolone, a corticosteroid, is prescribed for many different conditions and can sometimes be used to help control inflammatory and allergic conditions such as asthma, rheumatoid arthritis and colitis.

Certain cells in the body release chemicals which cause inflammation and prednisolone stops the release of these, reducing inflammation.

It can cause weight gain if you have been on them for longer than a short five-to-seven day course, because it stimulates the appetite.

It can also, by its effect on the fluid balance mechanism in your body, cause fluid retention or a feeling of bloating.

It is very important you do not stop your medicine, but if the side effects are causing a problem, discuss these with your GP or the doctor who prescribed them for you.