Anyone's baby had to get ear tubes?

[kerryke]

Hi everyone, my daughter is 10 months old and has had probably five ear infections, and one
of those times it was in both ears.  Anyway, we were not going back to the dr after each dose of antibiotics because initially we didnt know to, and then subsequently at the next visit they would say
she had some fluid or an infections, only 1 time did we ever had a "sign" that she had an ear infection (fussy when laying flat).  Anyway, two weeks ago I took her to the Dr and she had some fluid in her rt ear and the dr said she was giving her augmentin (which didnt work before) and that she needed to go to an ear nose and throat dr, which I begged to give us another shot.  That night we ended up at Urgent Care and my daughter had RSV and the Dr said that babies generally always get an ear infection with that.  Well, last night we ended up there again and she still (I say still because she just finished her antibiotic that day) so they switched her to ominicef.  Once they gave her a shot (which was supposed to be a series of 3 and hers was clear by 1) and it worked great, but they wont do it again, and now I have to go the the ENT dr, my appt is Friday.  Does anyone know of any other alternavtives or does anyone just love the fact that their child got the tubes, I would really like to try
to wait til summer to see if it improves as she ages and the tube grows and tilts more, but I dont
think they are going to let me.  Any advice? I have tried everything, feeding her upright, taking her pacifier away more, propping her up to sleep....

[Me2mommy2b]

Some kids just get frequent ear infections.  It's the anatomy of the ear that's causing frequent liquid retention in the ear (it contributes to it anyway).  Some swear by ear tubes, others do not like them too much.  Your other option (if you decide not to have any tubes put it) would be to continue treating her infections with the antibiotics which her body could start resisting eventually due to mutation.  Ear tubes are not the worse things that can happen to her.  Even though I'm not too fond of them, for some children it's the answer to the parents' prayers.  Good luck and I hope your little angel get the relief soon :)

[sleepless_mom]

My son now 4.5, had over 5 ear infections per/year for the first 2.5 years. Terrible infections, including 2 that ruptured--ouch!!!!! I also was sent to an ENT who said he would like me to consider having my son get ear tubes. As a child I had frequent ear infections/ sinus problems too and finally outgrew them, so I  opted to wait it out. I'm glad I did. Now at 4 he rarely gets sick and has only had 1 ear infection in the last year. Shortly after, we had a US BioTek food allergy test done and it turned out that a contributing problem was a severe casein allergy (milk and all bovine byproducts). Once we eliminated these allergens he improved vastly.

Inclining her crib mattress and being sure she doesn't lay done until at eat 1/2 hour after feeding will also help. It's up to you to make the best health care decision for your child, but personally I'd try to avoid medical intervention at such an early age. You really might want to consider a Food allergy test. At least for us it was night and day both for the chronic ear infections and improving my son's temperament and fussiness.

[JoyRenee]

I have a friend whose son just got tubes in his ears. The procedure takes less than an hour and it is outpatient, so she goes home the same day. It is very safe.

I also had this done as a child and it was a Godsend. So try it out. It may be your miracle and she'll be a happier, more content baby.

[pertykitty]

my son had horrible infections. we tried several different meds, even 2 antibiotics at once.  even a preventative.  nothing.  he had the tubes placed at around 1yr.  he did great, mom not so great lol.  he had maybe one other infection after that.  he had some problems after, but i did too and we arent the majority.  his hearing is better now too.  the frequent infections can cause scarring and lead to hearing loss.  i say if you have exhausted all other tries and you see an ENT and they agree, then go ahead.  just remember that with tubes you cant get their ears wet so you have to use ear plugs for bathing, pools everything.  if you use a pool on a regular basis have the ear plugs made!! good luck

[JoyRenee]

I completely forgot about ear plugs! Pertykitty is correct. I remember going to swimming pools with my friends and I had to wear ear plugs, sometimes a cap to help keep the plugs in (we bought cheap ones for lack of $$$ so definitely have some fitted).

[Crritter]

My boys have had bad ear infections, Carson started by 2 months and finally outgrew them around 15 months.  It was so bad, and the ped called it one day 1 when he was born that his tubes were flat and once they moved down would be fine, but we were in for lots of ear infections.  I was surprised they never did want to tube him cuz kids with way less were going in.  We finally took him to a chiropractor and it worked, had not had any issues till just a few weeks back, he 4 & 1/2 now.  Cameron is in the midst of this now, he has been getting them nonstop since December, but not before, so he started later.  He was even on Augmentin for a respiratory infection and got an ear infection while on meds.  He was also just on Omnicef as the Augmentin is no longer strong enough, for a left ear infection.  Both boys were really sick and I took them in, Cam was on day 7 of Omnicef and had RSV last week.  We discovered that now both ears were infected and he had influenza A.  Carson had some other viral bug, but got influenza A too soon after.  Long weekend for us, but they gave Cam the shot of Rocephen for 2 days and he looked good in his ears.  Last shot on Friday and today he is digging at his left ear again.  Has not eaten much at all in over 2 weeks, very sad, and no sleep.  They are hoping he will outgrow it like his big brother.  I hope so, but he sleeps elevated also for his reflux.  I would talk to the Dr. at least and go  from there.  You may be fine when spring gets here and colds are gone, but your baby may just need them.  Good luck, I hope she feels better soon!

[kerryke]

That is the sad part, she is a little ray of sunshine, you wouldnt even know it with her personality that anything was bothering her.  We have tried amoxicillin, augmentin, omnicef and then a shot of something (I think it starts with R) and the shot seemed to be the only thing that worked.  She gets such bad diarreah from the antibiotics and ineveitably
gets a yeast rash on her buns, I just feel so bad for her. The dr is forcing me to go, so I will at least go and see what he says.  My brother is a surgical tech at the Childrens Hospital and he knows the dr, so he is going to talk to him tomorrow and tell him that we are coming in.  I dont want to be locked into it, I really want his true opinion.  I think they only stay in for a year or so.  We'll see.  Thank you all for answering, and yes, I will be a nightmare at the hospital.  My husband says they will have to put me under some anesthesia, and all kidding aside, they just might.

[heatherlynn22]

i actually had tubes in my ears as a kid. they put mine in when the removed my tonsils. i think i was 8 or 9. after they fell out (which was SO gross) i haven't had any ear infections. occasionally i'd get "sore" ears but nothing like it was prior to having them put in. and the surgery (with the tonsils coming out) was an outpatient procedure. i know i handled it ok but i'm not sure how a baby would do with it. have you brought your concerns up to her doc?

[sleepless_mom]

With all the antibiotics you might want to talk to your doc about a pro-biotic for your daughter. Our doctor put my son on (Lactobacillus) acidophillus to restore levels of ‘good’ bacteria, strengthen immune health, and reduce the diarrhea caused by the antibiotics. It's all natural and really works wonders. We used the powdered capsules and broke them open into something he was going to eat or drink. It's now a standby in our house for tummy aches. Good luck with you daughter I hope she feels better soon.

[Trialanderror]

Kerryke, the placement of ear tubes is mainly done to prevent learning disabilities caused by hearing loss. Doctors check if there is any fluid build-up still after a minimum of 3 months of the last infection before placing tubes but many doctors recommend to wait and see for 9 months whether the fluid has all cleared up. They check the hearing to determine the severity. It is really hard to decide... Tubes have a very slight risk that the perforation of the ear drum will not totally close up later but in comparison to administering tons of antibiotics - I don`t know which is worse.
It would be too late now but some also advise now to let baby`s very first ear infection pass without antibiotics if it only lasts a day. I tried and my son suffered for one day and was fine the next. No infections thereafter. The problem is that it is so hard to properly administer antibiotics to infants, so they may only get half the dose and develop resistance and so on instead of fighting the first case on their own.
Also, since ear infections strive on the same stuff that causes strep throat, tonsilitis, pink eye...you can always help your baby by not exposing her too much to other kids with these illnesses or by avoiding to sample their babyfood and inadvertently passing on bacteria. Sometimes us parents can even be silent carriers of the bacteria and pass it on again and again. Well, anyway, good luck in your decision,
it is hard.

[pertykitty]

my son and myself had holes that didnt close up after the tubes were removed (neither of ours fell out) and had surgeries to close it.  we are not the norm im sure, lucky us lol.  

[kerryke]

How old was your son when he had his tubes put in?

[pertykitty]

about 1, hard to remember he is 9 now.  for us it was worth it.  it was a quick procedure, it was harder on me than on him.  its a hard choice to make for some, but the infections were coming back before we were done with the meds.  i was much older when i had mine, maybe 5?  i dont remember it at all.  we also had our tonsils out and our adenoids (adenoids).  that was much worse.  other than braces coming soon he is doing great now. its hard being a parent and trusting others even drs'. with our babies

[rukiyar]

My son suffered from the same problem and I too was very apprehensive about tubes but after his last horrible bout with yet another infection requiring a shot of Rocefrin I buckled and did it and I am so glad I did, the procdure took literally less than ten minutes he was 11 months and the difference in him was immediate , He started to react more to music, and sounds and his vocabulary picked up two fold , He's two and a half now and has not had one infection since, I think if I would have waited he would have had some speech problems also who knows what all those antibiotics will do over the years. . We just are very careful about getting water n his ears in the tub and shower butr that is nothing compared to what we used to go throught with him

[kerryke]

its true, I basically want someone to tell me that she "has" to get them or it will do damage to her ears, and no one will say that, so I am still extremely reluctant.
We have an appt Thurs with a more liberal (natural?) dr that I think tries harder to find
ways not to require medical intervention, and then our appointment with the ENT dr on Friday.  If our dr Thurs says he feels its necessary, I will trust him and keep the appt.
In the mean time, my brother is a surgical tech at Childrens Hospital where she would have the procedure and he works with the Dr we were referred to and have the appt with Friday, so he is going to talk to him today and ask him to give some extra attention to our case.  Thank you all for your replies, it really does help guide me and consider other perspectives.