4 Mo. Old Ear Piercing.

I agree with the Neosporin advice, but I also have to agree with the mommy from a few posts ago... If the ear is really that irritated and causing the child pain, she should take the earring out. No 4 month old really needs their ears pierced. Punching holes into ones body is a decision that should be made by the person whose body is being damaged. And no 4 month old is capable of chosing or understanding earrings. Don't get me wrong, I love my pierced ears... But I wouldn't chose to pierce my child's body without their clear understanding of the piercing.

I got pierced and it got infected right away. My doctor put me on antibiotics and I was fine after that. Maybe a doctor could do something for your niece too.
Sue

Sorry, but your sister is being silly. She would risk an infection over her kid looking cute?? Take it out would be my suggestion. I don't believe in peircing that young any way, but that is just me.

Adriana:

The key to caring for newly pierced ears is cleanliness. The pierced ears will become infected if they are not kept clean. The easiest way to do this is to soak a cotton swab in hydrogen peroxide and swab both sides of the ears, morning and evening. If the pierced area starts looking red or begins to itch, apply an antibiotic ointment to the area three times a day. This should stave off an infection, but if the redness and/or itching persists for more than a couple of days, or gets worse, with a lot of drainage, the person should see a physician.

Most people have their ears pierced first with "starter" earrings, which are usually studs. The person should make certain that the starter earrings do not contain nickel, which can cause an allergic reaction. Most ear piercing uses a pointed end on the stud itself to actually pierce the ear, which is preferable to having it done with a needle. It is generally more sterile, and the person doing the piercing will not have to pierce the ear, then fit the earring into the hole; it's all done in one operation.

Nana F.

Neosporin work well and helps keep the "crust" away. :)

ok 1st off toss out that solution its alcohol based and dries the skin out. if you have ever had a body peircing tend to the earrings like that. with my daughter i got her ears peirced at 9 weeks i use neosporn on her ears 2 times a day (morning and night) her ears were healed in 1/2 the time but i did wait the full 6 weeks to change them). also after the first week i quit turning them more then 2 times a day. i hope this helps good luck.

My grandmother used to put us thread in each ear for about a month, then the earrings for the same reason. The thread should be short and lose (size of a small loop)enough to tie a knot and move the thread once in a while. Hope this help.

D. A.

Sometimes a person is allergic to the metal used in the post/earring.

What's more important, your niece's health and well being or pierced ears? She's only four months old, does she really need the extra trouble and discomfort this may be causing? Your sister-in-law should take your niece to the doctor and do what is best for her daughter even if it means removing the earrings.

My daughter just had her ears done a few weeks ago. Her ears were starting to turn red too. Instead of using a cotton ball to clean her ears. I got a q-tip dipped it in the solution and I pushed out the earrings so that the post was exposed(not taking them out) and cleaned them that way. Make sure u twist the front and back so that the earring doesnt get stuck to the skin. make sure u clean back and front of ear real good. We increased it from 3x a day to 5x for another 2 weeks. It might seem like alot of work but I'd rather spend an extra few mins so that my daughter ears didnt get infected.

I would tell her to go to the dr. and see what he says. It may just be the earrings itself that's making it red. My daughter had the same problem, but all I did was switch the earrings and she was fine. So maybe have her try that. Good luck.

My ears got infected. I got them at the same time as my 3mo daughter and her were fine, but mine swelled and got infected. It was irritating but not overly painful.
Are the earring real gold. Make sure that they are. I just took the earring out, soaked them in alcohol, cleaned the ear very well. I saw you got good advice with the neosporin. Then put them back in. A few days later they were fine. and much better after the cleaning. no antibiotics taken.

Also you don't need a cotton swab or ball to clean it. Just pour the solution directly on the earring. The cotton might get off and into the earring and cause irritation. I notice the bottle that they gave me didn't pour out but just dropped. so that was nice

I hate to be a thorn here but if the doctor says take it out the health of her daugther should override the fact she "wants" her ears pierced. Try a little alcohol, not much and a dab of antibiotic ointment. I've got 3 holes in each ear and the third holes did the same thing her ears did; of course I was 14 but still. It could be she's got sensitive ears and can only handle certain types of metals. Cleaning more than recommended with the solution won't help, you'll just be wasting the solution.