There are new findings tonight about how best to treat the most common illness in young children in this country: ear infections. Seventy-five percent of young people will have at least one ear infection by the time they’re three and doctors write 15 million antibiotic prescriptions a year. But as ABC’s John Mackenzie reports, a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests a much more simple, safe, alternative.

-- About 75 to 80% of kids who have ear infections will get better without antibiotic treatment.

In the study out tonight, parents of children with ear infections were given a prescription for antibiotics. Half were told to get the medication right away; the other half were told to wait two days.

-- The wait-and-see approach is definitely reasonable. In Denmark and other parts of Europe, for many years, people have not been giving antibiotics at all.

Researchers found children who waited recovered at the same rate as those who started on the antibiotics. And with the “wait-and-see” approach there was no increase in fevers, ear pain or subsequent visits to the doctor. To help with the child’s fever and pain, parents were given over-the-counter ibuprofen and eardrops.

With this approach, if a child does not recover in a couple of days, parents still have the option of filling the prescription and giving the child the antibiotic. But many parents are uneasy watching and waiting.

Saving antibiotics for children when they really need them.