8 Month Old with Reoccuring Ear Infections

I really don't know much about ear infection, but I had a friend who child was going thru the same thing. Are you putting you son to bed with a bottle at night? If so, don't! This can cause ear infection as well as tooth problems later in life. I was told to give my daughter her bottle before putting her down to sleep at night. This has help me a lot!
I hope this helps!
J. L. from Pacifica, CA

I have 3 kids; 5, 3.5 and a 9 month old. My two older kids had ear infections all the time. My 9 month old has only had one. The only thing I did differently is I use Born Free bottles which have a special suction valve which are supposed to reduce the number of ear infections. They were expensive, 2 bottles for $20 but it has been worth it.

My daughter had multiple ear infections and finally had to have tubes put in her ears. (She is fine now).

After that, I read that using a humidifier in the child's room can help prevent ear infections. I wish I had tried that with my daughter. It's worth a try. Good Luck!

Dear T.,

First: IMMEDIATELY give your son probiotics. Your son's body needs to replace all of the good bacteria the antibiotics are killing to avoid more infections such as yeast infections and ANOTHER ear infection! Bio-K is the most potent probiotic (good bacteria builders) available. It tastes like yogurt, if you buy the fruit one. One would need to eat gallons of yogurt to compare to Bio-K. Bio-K is found at most health food stores including Whole Foods, El Cerrito Natural, and Berkeley Natural http://www.biokplus.com/

Second: PLEASE consult with alternative health experts such as my homeopath, Dr. Christine Ciavarella ###-###-####. She can find the source and prevent it from happening as opposed to simply treating it after it has occurred - again. If absolutely necessary, she can prescribe antibiotics.

Third: Research the internet http://home.homewebs.com/holisticmoms/index.cfm/bookmarks
http://www.babypurity.com/now/nowyouknow.htm

To you and your baby's health,
J. Brass
Hair and Makeup Artist - non-toxic practice
http://florescence-designs.com/

I would NOT give your baby antibiotics for ear infections. Most ear infections are viral and antibiotics are only effective for bacterial infections. Most doctors know this now and will not give antibiotics for ear infections. Giving your baby so many antibiotics can make him antibiotic resistant. This could be very bad for him if he ever has a severe infection of some kind later in life.
My daughter was a ear baby as well. We have never given her antibiotics and she is now 3.5. I hate to say this but I would seriously consider getting a new doctor. The over use of antibiotics has contributed to antibiotic resistance in many people leaving us with nothing to turn to in more serious conditions. Why don't you do some of your own research on the subject to help understand why the drugs are not effective for ear infections.
Good luck

I think some kids are more prone to getting ear infections. I had them as a baby and had to get tubes in my ears. I have not had an ear infection since. I thought for sure my daughter would get them, because she is in daycare and has allergies, but she is 13 months old and has only had 1. There is probably not much you can do besides keep doing the antiobiotics or get the tubes in his ears.

Hi T.,

I know your pain all too well. My son was also 6-mo old when he got his first infection and after three or four more in the next two months we decided to have tubes put in his ears. I agonized over the decision, but our wonderful ear/nose/throat specialist at Children's Hospital in Oakland said it would be best - and he was RIGHT! Although my son did still get a couple more infections, we were able to treat it topically, which is so much better than ingesting so many antibiotics. Now he is 3 1/2 and hasn't had another ear infection. I'd highly recommend the procedure.

Good luck,
S.

T.
When my son was just a few months old he had his first ear infection. I had my son to the doctor atleast twenty times the first year of his life. They ended up putting tubes in his ears at 18 months old. He still had ear infections. I felt like he was on antibiotics all the time. NOT healthy...
It wasn't until he got a little older that we found out that he had severe food allergies. Food allergies can be related to alot of illnesses. My son was allergic to Soy and he was a Soy formula baby. Although he didn't have a severe reaction and there were no visible symptoms, they called it oral syndrom. After I took soy away from him NO more ear infections. Not saying that this is the situation with your son but food allergies play a huge role on alot of childhood illness. If you ever decide to have an allergy test ran on him, do a full panel with a blood draw. Not the prick test. Do some research on the internet under food allergies and their symptoms, you might be surprised. My son ended up having 30 allergens and seven of them are to foods. Since I have taken those foods away from him he is feeling much better.Also if your doctor doesn't think you should do a food allergy test I would advise you to see another pediatrician. I myself went through 8 to 10 pediatricians until we found the problem!!! Just some advice... L.

Hi T.,

Our son had 9 ear infections in his first year of life. The antibiotics necessary to fight ear infections are some of the strongest around and they caused horrible, raw diaper rash. We finally gave in and had the ear tube surgery when he was 14 months old. He has only had one ear infection since the surgery and we were able to treat it with an ear drop antibiotic that did not affect his entire body. I was extremely wary of the surgery, but it has been a godsend for us. I suggest talking to your pediatrician about it. Best of luck to you and your family.

L.

My son had the same thing. His ears aren't draining when he gets a slight cold, or if he is teething. It took me months to figure it out, but finally it dawned on me. He would get an ear infection (he would always be more boogery) like a cold or a tooth. It would all back up in his ear and wouldn't drain, which would cause the infection. I have older girls and they would always bring something home to him. Funny he was the one nursed for a full year, didn't seem to help. It all stopped when he stopped getting teeth constantly, around a year and a half.

You can, take him to a chiropractor and have them pull on his ears to get them to drain. Or you will have to keep giving him antibiotics until he reaches an age when he is not teething constantly.

How strange, my oldes girl never had an ear infection. My second girl maybe had one or two. My son, who is now 2 and a half, has had like 7 by the time he was 1 1/2. Hasn't had one in a long time.

Hope that helps.

Did your son start teething at six months, too? The reason why I ask is because my son, who is now three, suffered from chronic ear infections. He began getting them when he started teething, and once his teething had stopped, he never had ear infections again. The only antibiotic that worked for him was Zythromax. It took many ear infections and many other antibiotics before our pediatrician was willing to try Zythromax, but then that was the only thing that seemed to work quickly and to have the ear infection actually gone before the recheck visit. We had actually had our son scheduled for tubes; and when we went in for his pre-op with the doctor, the doctor said that his ears were completely clear; so he wasn't going to put the tubes in. How lucky were we!! I just think that the excessive saliva when teething is linked to ear infections, or fluid on the ears. Just my thoughts, though. Well, good luck with all of it!!

hello
grandkids also have this problem UNTILL I finally had tubes put in both ears

doctors wait and wait insurance does NOT want to pay so YOU must fight to get this done

good luck

hey! I COMPLETELY feel your pain, only my son was in Day Care which meant I had to leave work at least a couple days every month for MONTHS. He actually got his first ear infection when he was about 5 months, when he started cutting a new tooth. Every Single Tooth after that caused a double ear infection and pink eye. My pediatrician finally referred us to an Ears, Nose, & Throat doctor who -- thank goodness -- did NOT put tubes in his ears because the infection could be linked to fluid buildup as a result of the teeth. My friend's baby had tubes put in his ears when he was super young-- like 8 months or something-- and they've had all kinds of problems with them. Both boys are three now, and while they are also both totally healthy, my son had a lot less trouble than hers simply because he did not get the tubes. I know the ear infections are a pain, but I am a HUGE advocate of as little medical intervention as possible-- their little bodies can get through more than we give them credit for. One thing that helped soothe his pain (which sounds wierd) is using a little clove of garlic wrapped in tissue and holding it in the ear canal loosely for a little bit-- like when you're snuggling or he's sleeping or whatever. There are lots of websites on these homeopathic remedies, and my experience is that they work actually a lot better than antibiotics, which did little for my son. GOOD LUCK!!! :)

my oldest son had reoccuring ear infections when he was younger and it actually damaged his hearing somewhat before his pediatrician FINALLY referred him to an ENT who promptly sheduled him for a surgery to put tubes in his ears. Since then he's had them put in two additional times when the others fell out, it's a simple procedure and although it does require anesthesia, my child was only in surgery for ten minutes and I was back with him within 20 minutes and he was waking up (so it's not a lot of anesthesia, only puts them out for like 5-10 minutes). His ear infections with the tubes STOPPED totally and he finally started talking with the last set (about age 3). He was speech delayed because of the hearing issues early on but now he's 15 almost 16, in all honors classes, no speech problems at all, and very active (runs cross country) etc.
The tubes fell out a long time ago, and he still occasionally gets an ear infection but when they are little their ears aren't developed enough to drain the fluids out when they get fluid in the ear. So the tubes help with that so that their hearing develops properly and there isn't scar tissue building on the ear drums.
I'd just ask for an ENT referral if the issue persists. My son had 5-7 infections in the first year of life before i finally got a referral and by then he already had some damage to his ear drums.

T., I know this may seem random, but I had a baby who had constant ear infections from the age of 6 months to 1 yr. Along with the ear infections, he was constantly getting sick and always had a runny nose, mild diarrea (sp?), and a cough. I had always suspected that he had a dairy allergy but the Dr convinced me he didn't. Eventually I decided to take him off of dairy (all dairy, not just lactose products). Within 3 days of eliminating all dairy, he was cured! He has had a few colds this winter but no more ear infections or chronic runny noses. It's worth a try! -E.

Some babies are just way more prone to experience ear infections. Sounds very similar to my nephew's experience when he was a baby, and he ended up needing tubes put it. Also my best friend's niece just had tubes put in (she's 11 mos old). Has your pediatrician brought this up yet as a very possible option??
Good luck, I know how rough the ear infections can be on both baby AND mommy!

Hello,

I am a mom a 4 and my 3rd child was ear infection proned and nursesd exclusively for 1 year. She started with the first infection about 5 months old and every month after that. We tried all the 1st 4 antibiotics, amoxicillin, augmentin, omnicef, and 1 more I can't remember, but none every really worked completely. With our Dr's advice, he sent us to an ENT MD, who there we decided to put tubes in her ears. What a great decision that was. No more ear infections. I think she had tubes in her ears for 2 1/2 years until they removed them and she has had maybe 3 since then. Children get immuned to the anitbiotics and I didn't want to take anymore medicine with fear that for a simple ear infection we would have to resort to the much stronger stuff. This is when multi drug resistant infections occur. I know, I work in a hospital on a nursing floor and I see this all too often. Go for the tubes if they offer it. It was a simple 20 minute procedure and no more ear infections.
Good luck Trish

My nephew had this and he had short estcaion (sp?)tubes. He ended up having to have surgery which was very minor. Good luck.

Hi,

This may be a long road for you. My son had lots of ear infections and he has an allergy to penicillin drugs. We went through a lot of non- penicillin drugs that didn't help. I felt that we were destroying his little immune system. I was told to try Garlic and Mulin oil. I used garlic and mulin oil in his ears and it helped a lot. It was my first relief for him. You can find it at the health food store. You can also look it up on line. This is just a thought, it might help your son.
J.

Hi T.!

I used to work closely with Ear, Nose and Throat Doctor's for 7 years. I remembering being AMAZED at how often the same children got ear infections! I knew most of the patients First Name, Last Name and Birthdate by heart because they were in so often. Doc's say some kids are just prone to infections more than others, and that is normal for them. Most will have had tubes put in their ears at a very young age. All of this is normal. Because I knew this, when I had children, I tried my hardest NOT to have one of those kids :o)

My madness:
I would try to keep their ears dry daily. Light swabbing was my method, sometimes a dry, baby washcloth I would use to wipe the inside of the ear. I also was especially careful with the position of their head when it was time for a bottle. Their head needs to be ABOVE their belly when they're feeding. This way nothing gets trapped in the Eustachian Tube when they lay flat. As they got older (yours is still too young for this unless she is watched every second) I would put a pillow in their crib to raise their heads up when they napped. Especially around teething, when everything gets more "drainy". Again, this helped not get any drainage backing down into the Eustachian tube.

Call me lucky, as I NEVER had to take my boys in with more than 1 infection when they were under 2. I don't know if it was my "method of madness", or just a Blessing :o)

Bottom line is, the doc's are pro's with ear infections, and they know when they will need tubes, etc... Don't be too alarmed if she does. It's a daily procedure and very easy, and routine.

Try my "tricks" to see if you can delay another infection so soon. Your daughter is probably just starting to teeth so you could be in for more infections.

Good Luck!

:o) N.

i've read that antibiotics have proven to not truly get rid of an ear infections. rather, it just makes the symptoms go away for a bit, only to return. a work friend said that her son had recurring ear infections until she finally went to a homeopathic doctor. The doctor was able to give a remedy that finally cured the ear infection and her son never got another one! Drop me a line if you'd like me to give you that doctor's name. She is located in north Berkeley.

Hi T.,

My son had a lot of ear infections from 3mo to about 9mo, at which time we had tubes put in his ears. Each infection was right after the other and switching from ear to ear. Sometimes we didn't know he had one until we went in to have the other ear checked. The tubes worked wonders for our son. The only thing I caution is to see if these constant ear infections affect his hearing and development of speech, they did for our son. I still believe to this day that the ear infections contributed to his learning issues today. If we hadn't done the tubes I'm afraid it might have been worse. Whatever happens I would just keep checking on his hearing as he gets older if ear infections persist.

My daughter had this as well at an early age and luckly her doctor knew to refer me to an ear-nose & throat specialist after her 3rd ear infection within 3 months.She ended up having to have tubes placed in both ears. As it turned out she had a hard time hearing before the surgery and that was corrected by the surgery. Cant remember details as she is 6 now, but they worked wonderfully. Surgery took less then 15 min total, but she did have to be put to sleep. They typically fall out by themselves after 2 years. She has not had 1 single ear infection since. I would get a referral ASAP.

If you are still breastfeeding, try reducing or removing dairy products from your diet. My friend had the same problem with her daughter and this did the trick.

Also, ask your doctor about Otic pain relief drops prescription. I am not home or I would give you the name of the Rx drops. These worked wonders for my daughter who often developed fluid and pressure in the ear canal, but never got severe ingections. These drops allowed us to avoid overuse of antiboitics.

I caution to not keep using dose after dose of antibiotics, it will ruin your son's teeth...I know from experience as my son got an ear infection with every tooth and the weaker antibiotics never worked so the doctors were always putting him on a stronger dose. He is 13 now and self conscious about his teeth. We will probably end up having to do some cosmetic dentistry to improve how they look.

My son is 14 years old now, but he had chronic ear infections as an infant...to the point that certain antibiotics wouldn't even help him because he used them so much.

You said that he's not in daycare...so that takes away that problem. One major problem can be lying down with a bottle. Whenever he has a bottle, he should be in a sitting position. This can really help.

Other than that, some kids are just super prone to them. We tried all of the tricks and some things worked...but ultimately we just had to tough it out. He will most likely outgrow them...I think my son stopped getting them probably around 2-3 years old. Hang in there!

My son had his first ear infection at 2 months and has since had more than a dozen (he is now 15 months old). We went through every antibiotic and he is now officially not responding to any of them. Luckily I met with an ENT specialist and we are getting tubes Friday. Generally they prefer to wait until the child is 18 months, but if the infections are reoccuring and not responding to medication you may want to consult with a specialist. They will be able to tell if it's severe enough to consider tubes. Good luck, I know they can be terrible for both baby and mommy.

Hi T.,

My now 2 1/2 year old had exactly the same problems as your baby boy. We took him to an ear specialist and found that not only did he have fluid and puss in his ears, but he was suffering hearing loss due to constant ear infections. He has had tubes put in his ears twice now and it's been a miracle surgery. His first time around the tubes were put in and lasted about 6 months. They were the ultra small ones and the ended up falling out prematurely, which is very common. He just underwent his second surgery and is doing great. If your son suffers like you say, it will eventually effect his speech and hearing as well. I highly recommend asking your pediatrician about taking him to an ear specialist to discuss the possiblities. My son is like a new boy now that he's not in pain and not constantly on anti-biotics. And, it's a big relief for the rest of the family as well.

Hope this helps...good luck

Start giving him Caprylic Acid capsules and Cod liver oil.
Stop all milk and wheat products.

My daughter got an ear infection at about the same age and the doctor gave her antibiotics. By the time she finished the first round of antibiotics she got another ear infection and we went back and got a different antibiotic. Well when the third one came around I flipped out and said, "This is not working!" I called my midwife and she suggested "Mullen Garlic Tincture" by Herb Farm for ear infections. I put the drops in her ears and it worked. She never got another ear infection. This company has been in business for over 25 years and they still make this great product.
GOOD LUCK,
Gale

Hi T., does your son use a bottle? If so, make sure that he is in an upright position when he drinks, not laying down. The liquid can get in his inner ear and the fluid causes the ear infection. Hope this helps.

hi
my son had the same problem when he was around that age. he saw his pediatrican who prescribed antibotics and that didn't work so we took he to er and they gave him more.he had about 3-4 different types of antibotics and now has a comproimsed immune system. so please it will take awhile to sort itself out,but you need to be careful what he is getting and make sure that your dr and pharamcist are aware of any complications that may arise

T.,
I know how your feeling, My son had his 1st ear infection at 4 or 5 months old, Its horrible and he's had 3 other ones as well.
I was so concerned about him having 4 ear infections, but each time his dr. has me go back in to make sure the infection is gone after the antibiotics and it usually is.
He had an ear infection so bad he was crying and then I took him to ER which they told me that his ear inside was so infected that the only way to describe it was it looked like someone put a Cigarette out on the inside of his ear. They put him on a real strong antibiotic it made him vomit and then his dr. gave him a different one, Helped.....
I also took my son to see a Ear Nose and Throat dr. I had so many people telling me, Oh yeah my kid had tubes and blah blah blah. So I finally thought I am taking him to the ENT dr.
They told me 4 ear infections in 2 years in nothing. So if you are still feeling like he is not getting better or why he might be having reoccuring ear Infections then I would take him to a specialist.

Good luck

Hello T.....when my son was little he is 36 now and my grandson was 2 he is 5 now....they both went thru the ear infections.......in both cases i finally took them to an ear nose and throat doctor....my son at 22 months had his adnoids and tgonsils removed and tubes put in his ears....was never sick a day in kife again after that....my grandson....poor thing was in er repeatedly and on all antibotics possible....when i finally took him to the ent doc he said he was as close tp beibg deaf as one can get without beibg deaf....he put tubes in his hears and my grandson has not been sick since and he has great hearibg now....and chooses to be like all males now....and have selective hearing lol lol...so do not wait call and ear nose thorat doctor the peditricians will stall and keep giving antibotics and you could have your child lose their hearing....you demand.... You are the one paying for the health insurance

You've gotten a lot of replys already, but I remember reading about milk allergies, so I googled this and found the following info. I would prefer to do these first before surgery or multiple antibiotic courses.

Preventive Care (from Mother Nature.com)

Don't smoke around your child. Studies show that the children of smokers have more colds and ear infections than children of nonsmokers. ''If you smoke, the best thing you can do for your child is to quit. But if you don't quit, at least smoke outside. Don't smoke around your child,'' Dr. Macknin says.

Breastfeed your baby. Breastfeeding provides a protective benefit, because anitbodies passed along in the breast milk may decrease your baby's chance of getting an infection, notes Dr. Bluestone. There also seems to be something in mother's milk that helps prevent bacteria from sticking to the mucous membrane of the throat, making it less likely that germs will travel up the eustachian tube into the ear, he says. ''If you want to help prevent ear infections, you should breastfeed your baby for at least the first six months,'' Dr. Bluestone advises.

Feed baby in an upright position. When you bottlefeed or nurse your baby, keep his body in an upright position, especially if he tends to regurgitate a bit of his meal. ''If your baby is in a horizontal position while feeding, regurgitated milk can pass into the eustachian tube, and possibly cause an infection,'' says Dr. Zahtz. This is less likely to happen if you hold your baby at an angle of 45 degrees or more while feeding, he says.

Consider a babysitter instead of day care. Babies under one year old are especially vulnerable to the many viruses in a day-care environment, according to Dr. Bluestone. As a result, they end up with more ear infections than children who are cared for at home, he says. If possible, consider delaying day care until your child is past this critical age.

Ask the doctor about milk allergy. In rare cases, recurrent ear infections may be due to milk allergy, says Dr. Zahtz. ''If a child with chronic infections is less than a year old, I try taking him off all milk products for four weeks to see what develops.'' Don't make any diet changes without talking to your doctor first, though, advises Dr. Zahtz, or you could seriously compromise your child's health.

Watch for early signs of sinus infection. If your child has a cold, and the nasal mucus starts to thicken and become colored, consult a doctor. Thick yellow or green mucus may indicate a sinus infection that needs to be treated with antibiotics, says Dr. Zahtz. If the problem is treated early, there is a good chance that it won't lead to an ear infection, he says.

Hi,

My son got on the antibiotic merry-go-round when he was about 1 year old, getting them monthly (or even more frequently!) for almost three years.

What Western doctors often don't tell you is that antibiotics actually make you MORE suceptible to getting another ear infection, and often they aren't actually doing anything to help because many ear infections are caused by viruses - which are not affected by antibiotic treatment!

We saw an osteopath in Aptos, Dr. Paulus, who I can't recommend highly enough. He taught me how to use an otoscope (spell?) so that I could monitor my son's ear infections. That way we could ride out the mild ones w/out further antibiotics and a whole lot fewer visits to the doctor's office!

We found that putting a wet washcloth into a cup, microwaving it till it's good and steamy and tipping his head over and pressing the cup to the affected ear so the steam rises up into it is great for pain relief (the steam equalizes the pressure against the gunk inside the eardrum that's pushing out - be careful it's not too hot, steam can burn!) Btw, this also works on painful ears from altitude change - I learned it from a stewardess.

Dr. Paulus also educated us about natural alternatives to boost my son's immune system, and provided osteopathic treatment.

My son has only had 2-3 ear infections since we started seeing Dr. Paulus... and he's now 9 years old!

Hi T.,
Like your son I as a child suffered from recurring ear infections. I have had so many my parents lost count. They never found the reason why but I did eventually grow out of them. I ended up needing tubes which helped alot the surgery is quick and painless. So if your son ends up needing them don't worry it will be for the better. Of course we dont want to see our children go through something like that at a young age but if it helps its worth it. I ended up with 3 sets as a kid. I hope it doesnt go that far and that they subside. Ear drops in the meantime help numb the ear and that worked great when my 3 yr old an ear inf. the last time. A heating pad too but he is a little too young for that.
Good Luck! Have a wonderful day.

I have been throught the same thing, it is very frusterating! My son had ear infection once a month for 8 months straight and it was horrible. Here are the things that I did for him that I believe helped. He has not had a single ear infection for the past year now.
*I run a vaporizor in his room at night, sometimes with a few drops of eucalypts and lavender pure essential oil.
* when he had an ear infection I always elevated the head of his crib to assist in drainage
*I would massage around his ears and along his Jaw everynight. its called tympanic massage, helps to drain the ears. You can look into how to do it online..
*I also took him to an osteopath, I think it did help, but was expensive.
He was on antibiotics every month for 8 months, so during that and after that I gave him baby acidoplylus. and I continue to do so now.
* if he had a stuffy nose I would use ocean drops and clear his nasal passage every night before bed with an aspirator.
I hope one or all of these suggestions help you out.
goodluck!
D.

We are the same as you are with this..we have a 7mos old who has had 3 double ear infections in 3mos - they have had her on erythimycin, amoxicillin and agmunten - this last one gave her severe diarehea and it was a mess...they took her off that after 5 days and now have her on zitromax for 5more days ... we are so frustrated with it. She is having a hard time sleeping,eating,etc..and is so cranky - I feel like I haven't slept in days. What is your Dr telling you about it - do they say what is causing your childs they think? Let me know if you get any good advice please!!! (____@____.com)

Hello
My son started having ear infections at 3 months old and responded to abx every time, however continued to have bilateral infections every other month w/out fail. Yes we started talking tubes, and then he turned 18 months old....he is now 25 months old and has not had one ear infection since. The doctor said he must have just grown out of it...he did not suffer any kind of hearing loss w/ the infections, so sometimes you just have to be patient. But it SUCKS watching your baby and yourself go through it. Hang in there and just keeping talking to your doctor and yes definitely go to the specialist just to talk to gather all your information. Hang in there!!!!

Take him to a pediatric chiropractor.(I'm serious!) My daughter had recurring ear infections and was scheduled for ear tubes. My friend begged me to give this a try first. I post-poned the surgery two weeks, and took her twice a week (4 times). Her ears were miraculously cleared. The doctor was shocked!!! We avoided a surgery and she rarely has an ear infection. I take her a couple times a year to the chiropractor. My son who is older wasn't as lucky. i didn't know about the chiroprator when he was young and he had three ear tube surgerys plus he had his adenoids out because they became so infected!! He also was on so many different antibiotics that his body became immune to them and would not respond. He suffered so much during that time! I look back and had wished someone had told me then what I now know about the chiroprator !! I was very anxious going in because I am not a "natural medicine " kind of Mom. But~ the experience and outcome was so....positive! Mother of four(9,12,17,20)

Although my daughter was 13 months old when she experienced this, it is still a nightmare! I was frustrated more in the fact that the antibiotics worked too well - they killed ALL bacteria which gave her the worst yeast infections. It pained me to change her diaper.
ANYHOW, the pediatrician & I talked about alternatives: change in diet & we discussed chiropractic care. I was really doubtful at first & my pediatrician was too (it was only because she hadn't seen enough research to be 100% comfortable recommending it - but supported the idea of my trying it) - chiropractics for infants? It made me nervous when my chiropractor suggested it with her first ear infection; however, I relented when it became chronic. He was really gentle with her & you wouldn't even think he was adjusting her because he just seemed to hold her, jiggle her & play with her. It worked really well!!! She had one more ear infection 3-4 months later & hasn't had one since.

I agree with some of the other mom's, avoid antibiotics if you can. Check out your local health food store. They can make reccomendations. I use 'Wally's Ear Oil' - it has garlic, strong odor but it seams to really help.

Hi,
My daughter had lots of ear infections, it took the doctor a full year before they did something. They put tubes in her ear, very simple quick procedure and she got only 1 or 2 ear infections later on years later. The tubes fall out in 1 year. With ear infections my daughter had a speech delay and balance delays. Please demand tubes so your child doesn't suffer speech delays or balance delays also. Mother of a 4, 6 and a 7 year old.

My daughter had numerous ear infections her first year of life. I highly recommend ear tubes. It's a very minor surgery, but it helped her SO much! Life after ear tubes was so great. FYI - we did have a humidifier in her room at night and it ran every single night. That did not help with preventing ear infections. Some kids ear canals aren't as mature, which then causes fluid to get stuck in their ears and they cannot drain fast enough. This was my daughters problem. The ear tubes helped her ears drain better, which in turn prevented fluid buildup and voila - no more ear infections! I know how it feels to constantly be dealing with ear infections. Good luck.

T.,
I so feel for you! Ear aches hurt and when our little ones are hurting, so are we...

My son didn't have his first ear infection until he turned one. From there, it seemed like one after another. It affected him in many different ways. He seemed sick all the time and didn't eat or sleep well. Finally at age 2, his pediatrician referred us to an ENT (ear, nose, throat doctor). The ENT was great and observed him sometime before putting tubes in his ears just before his 3rd bday.

My ENT was very conservative and would not rush to put tubes in his ears. This seems rough, but he is an excellent doctor and I appreciated his attitude toward sedating my young child to perform a procedure.

When he finally had it done, it was like I had a different child. He was happier, smiled more, and OMG - he GREW! He grew so much so fast!

Talk candidly with your pediatrician to understand his stance on the situation. Find out when he believes action should be taken. Ask for a referral to an ENT to get a second opinion. Be prepared to deal with the ear infections a little while longer though, because your baby is still so young.

Take Care,
Taunia

P.S. There were 2 more ear infections in the year after getting the tubes. Since then, he has had no ear infections at all and he turns seven in 2 weeks!

My 3 year old had multiple recurrent ear infections until age one. He was given all different antibiotics, longer and shorter courses. The fluid wasn't completely draining so, when he turned one, the doctor recommended tubes. It was the best decision!! He hasn't had an ear infection since and the procedure was pretty benign. (The only unfortunate part of the procedure is that they have to be put to sleep and are pretty confused as they are waking up.)

Hi T.,

I feel for you and your little guy. My son, now 6, started getting ear infections when he was 6 months old. He had one every month without fail. He was in daycare at the time. He threshold for pain was very high. The first time he was diagnosed with it, we hadn't even taken him in for that. He never tugged at his ears or wailed. So we had to be diligent in watching out for it. No sooner would he finish taking the antibiotics, he would get another DOUBLE ear infection. It drove us nuts, he just couldn't catch a break. We tried changing the antibiotics several times so that his body wouldn't get immune to them. This went on for about a year. Finally, the doctor suggested that we put tubes in his ears. In preparing for that, we found that he had 50% hearing loss in his left ear. Now while he was already trying to talk and doing fairly well, we hadn't realized how all of this had already started to affect him. The procedure only took a few minutes. By the time they gave him the sedative and I went down to the cafeteria for some orange juice, he was done. The results were UNBELIEVABLE. He started talking NON STOP. I was told that this was because he could finally hear and make out even more words. It was then that we realized, the volume of his voice had gone done. He had actually been "shouting" if you will because he couldn't hear. At his next hearing test, no hearing loss. We were excited, to say the least. We had no more problems, he was able to swim, play in the bathtub all without fear of the dreaded ear infection. This lasted for a few years. Right before he turned five, it started again. So we had another set of tubes put in. To be so tiny, they give SOOO much relief. I thank God for those tubes.

The tubes fall out on their own after a year or so. You don't have to have another surgery to take them out. You may not even notice that they are gone. We happen to see one of them coming out for each set, but it was no big deal. He didn't even feel it. With the second set, it was lodged in with some ear wax, but he didn't have any discomfort, we just thought it was a ball of wax that wouldn't come out so we had the doctor do a removal and it was then that we discovered one of the tubes.

My son is now going to be seven and we have be relatively free from problems. He has had an ear infection here and there and now feels the pain of it and is able to let us know right away that he is hurting. But he doesn't suffer like he did when he was younger.

I would bring up the possibility of having tubes put in your son's ear with your pediatrician. Our pediatrician at the time didn't want to do anything until he was 1 year old. It's less stressful and less traumatic for them. Don't get me wrong, a child coming out from anesthesia is no joke. But it's still worth it.

Sorry this is so long, but I just wanted to let you know it does get better.

Good luck, and God bless

Hi, I have two daughters(4 and 5) and a 14 yr old step son. My girls' doctor at every well care check always asks if they are around any smokers. The answer is no. I finally asked why, he said that kids that are around second hand smoke tend to get many ear infections. I have always thought about fire place smoke, it bought on some alergies in my mother. Hope this helps. H.

Sometimes recurring ear infections can be caused by milk running from the baby's open mouth into their ear when they fall asleep drinking a bottle. Do you give your son a bottle when he goes to bed? If so, try not doing that and maybe the ear infections will stop.

We purchased the "Ear Check" monitor from babies r us. It just helps me know when to call the doctor and it keeps me on top of things so I know when to keep my little guy elevated. Also we use the homeopathic ear ache oil you can puchase at whole foods. Just a drop in each ear takes the intense pain away while you are waiting the 30 mins for tylenol to work.

see a pediatric allergy doctor. My daughter had ear infection after ear infection, i was told it was an allergy to cows milk, I didn't know about allergies and blew if off as a quack. She continued to have the infections and finally had "tubes" surgically placed in her ears. She never had an ear infection again. and the tubes fall out on their own when the car canal or drum had developed properly.

My friend has used NutraBiotic ear drops from health food stores. She swears by them. Her children had many infections and she was seeing the doc lots of times. Then she found the drops and uses them. My children have never had an ear infection. They take supplements and I use xylitol as sweetners in my foods. I have always used xylitol for their teeth and I think it must also help.

Check out books by Doris Rapp, MD about children and allergies. About 25 yrs ago when my children were babies, she did work with children and foods which caused allergic symptoms like ear problems, in particular, milk/wheat products.

By the time my daughter was 3 she had 10 ear infections and had been on loads of antibiotics. The biggest problem was that the fluid was not draining in between infections. Luckily I made the choice of changing pediatricians and our new doctor immediately referred us to an ENT who put tubes in her ears. I wish we had done it sooner. After the surgery the ENT said she had so much sticky fluid behind her drum. After the tubes she only had one infection and the best part was the fluid drained as it should. Because of her constant infections she had temporary hearing problems and spent two years in speech therapy. She is almost seven now and is doing great.

We went through this with our son (now 34) and now again with our twin grandbabies (18 months). Son was NOT in daycare, grandbabies are. Son had recurring ear infections due to under-developed eustacian tubes (tubes which naturally drain fluid from the ears). He ended up with scarring in his ears, had tubes inserted (which widens the eustacian tubes until their growth catches up). He now has NO pain when he gets an ear infection, but can tell he has one in other ways.

Twin grandbabies have each had 4-5 ear infections, several back-to-back in the fall. Thankfully have not had any for several months now.

It may be that he's not nursing/taking the bottle in an upright enough position, or his eustacian tubes may be under-developed. Changing the antibiotics is good. It may be that he's just more prone to ear infections at this age. Try to get him in to the doctor at the first sign of fever --- usually the indicator that there is an ear infection --- so they don't get a chance to get too bad.

We were always told that a baby might indicate an ear infection by pulling at their ears --- ours never did that.

Good luck --- he's sure to outgrow this.