Ear Infection That Won't Heal

Have you thought about taking her to a chiropractor? It's amazing what they can do. If you're in the Corpus area I can recommend a wonderful doctor. Let me know & good luck!! H. B

run, don't walk to the ENT. My Pedi kept giving my daughter antibiotics when in fact she just had fluid and not an infection. Thus she had way too many antibiotics. My daughter had two sets of tubes put in and on the second one we removed the adnoids. No problems since then. When talking about ears, go to someone who specializes in that. If there is fluid that is not draining then it will never get better.

Ear tubes are AMAZING! You asked how the infection would heal? Well if she had tubes, the infection could drain out the tubes. My daughter used to have one infection per month -- now she has tubes and has had only one infection the past year! I definitly recommend them!

What will happen is that eventually they will have to give her an extremely strong antibiotic to knock this infection out and then they will go in and place the tubes. Sometimes they will go ahead and remove her adnoids also.

My husband is so freaky about hospitals he would not let us go for the surgery. Finally our poor daughter lost enough hearing that my husband realized we had to get the surgery. We gave my husband a valuim and our daughter did great. She never had another ear problem again and regained all of her hearing. Thank goodness.

Go to an ENT right away. I suspect your child needs tubes. If so, do it. My cousins waited and waited because they didn't want their daughter to have surgery. Finally, at 18 months after more than 6 months of antibiotics, a furious ENT, and major speech delays, they broke down and had tubes put in her ears. Their only regret? That they waited so long. She's 2 1/2 now and has caught up on her speech and hasn't had another infection.

Been there, done that with the ear infections. My daughter had cronic ear infections from age 1 to 2. Our Dr said if she got one more infection she would need tubes. Now, she did respond to antibiotics but the fear was that she was getting so many of them that eventually she would not respond to any antibiotics. To make a long story short my daughter went from ear infections to sinus infections. We took her to see an allergist (we had some other concerns) and they suggested that we do an immunology blood workup on her. They took some blood and had it tested for antibodies (what we develop from getting our vaccines). Turns out she never developed the antibodies from her HiB vaccine!!! Why our own Dr never suggested this test is beyond words but our daughter got the booster for this vaccine and has never gotten another infection!! Weird huh? well, my daughter was older than yours but I wish I had looked into this sooner. It would have saved her another year of antibiotics and a CT scan we did on her sinuses.

I'm not sure if this helps but I wanted to share my story. Best of luck with everything!!

M. B

My understanding is that, sometimes there is fluid trapped behind the eardrum... Its wet, warm, perfect conditions for bacteria to thrive in. The antiboitics come in, knock out the infection but the fluid still is there, which brings a second infection back. Antibiotics come in, knock out the infection (although restistence to the same antibiotic is an issue so you have to go to something stronger). But again, the fluid is still trapped behind the eardrum... Another infection, etc.

You have to address the built up fluid. Otherwise the infection will be reoccurring. (Really, ear tube surgery was no biggie. It took literally 5 minutes. I thought I'd get a chance to sit in the waiting room and sip my coffee... No. By the time I finished going to the restroom, it was done. Hardest part is that they schedule it at 6am and you have to be there at 5:30! My daughter was 15 months when she got them in...)

When my son was a baby he used to get ear infections quite often. Usually antibiotics would help and then it would come back. My pediatrician had me try lifting the head end of his mattress and then if that didn't help he said we would have to go to tubes. I lifted the head end by putting a blanket under the mattress which it didn't lift it a lot but it was enough to help with drainage. He also suggested when I would feed him to have his feet lower than his head and the closer he could be to sitting up the better. This eventually got rid of our ear infection problem and tubes were not needed. I hope that works.

Hello. If you continue to have problems with the ear infections, try chiropractic. It works wonders! I have a super family chiropractor that is excellent with kids. Dr. Mahan at Discover Chiropractic. Hope that your kiddo continues to do well!

Our son has had 4 sets of ear tubes. He kept getting ear infections every month. Being on antibiotics for a long period of time is not good. The body will get immune to the antibiotic and it won't cure the infection. No parent wants to see their child go through this, but it is VERY important. We have been very blessed to have Dr. Devang Dasai as our ENT. He is an AWESOME doctor.

Good Luck

Rosie

My now 8 year old son had tubes put in his ears when he was 11 months old. At that time he constantly had ear infections, everytime we put him on antibiotics they would clear up, but then when he was finished he would get them again.(it was very scary too because he would shoot up to 105 degree fevers by the snap of your fingers) when he got them put in the doctors said that a whole lot of drainage came out, and when he came home from the hospital, he crawled around the house just babbling away, cuz he could hear himself talk. Then he started to walk, cuz his balance was better. His speech is perfect, his hearing is perfect.

the purpose of the tubes is to help the ear drain better cuz when they are children the ear canal doesn't drain down the throat like an adult, they are almost horizontal and the drainage just sits and festers and gets infected.

I highly recommend getting the tubes put in, they were a lifesaver for our child and only had 1 ear infection since then(like i said he is 8 now.)

I had the same problem with my son and daughter. The tubes help the infection drain out of their ears. Plus you can put antibiotic drops right on in and fight the ifection head on. After having the tubes for 1 year they came out of my sons ears(he got them in at age 2). My daughter got hers at age 1 and had still has them. They have both only had 1 ear infection with the tubes. My son hasn't had a problem with them gone now.

With that said, my son does have speech problems. I'm not sure if it is from the infections or if it is a problem he would have had anyway.

My pediatrician was giving her oral antibiotics, but when we went to the ENT, he gave us oral along with ear drops and it finally cleared up. Getting tubes was the best thing we ever did for our little one. She had so many ear infections I felt like we were in the doctors office every two weeks. Good Luck!

My husband had tubes. I think that the first thing I would look into is WHY he's getting these infections. My husband had surgery a few months ago and was on antibiotics for a long time following because of complications. Well, he gets sick EVERY TWO WEEKS!!! As long as it's been, he gets an infection/fever every other weekend and it lasts several days. I do think that if you have antibiotics for a long time it can exasperate the problem.

Milk is usually the biggest culprit, and wheat is second. I agree with the PP that said you should use probiotics but I don't know that it works if you're using antibiotics. And eliminate milk entirely and see if things improve. I do agree that sometimes tubes are necessary but ultimately it IS surgery and they DO put the child asleep (both have risks) so I would first try to find the cause.

I hope everything turns out great!

Something to consider. You may have to do a little research or take a trip to Whole Foods. I believe she may have a yeast infection. (There are books on getting the yeast out, also a gluten-free book might help). For instance too much sugar and white bread, if she drinks milk, that could be the worst culprit (checkout www.notmilk.com ). The added antibiotics added to milk may have cause her to have a resistance to the antibiotics she is taking. You may need to try a probiotic to replace the friendly bacteria that the antibiotics have stripped away. Probiotics help fend off yeast infections. I like to use Primadopholis, WF carries a child formula in the vitamin refrigerated section. The other thing about milk is that it is very mucous producing. Get her off all sugars and dairy for a week and see if there is any change. I am by no means a medical dr, but my husband had an ear problem many years ago, and I figured it to be a yeast problem and finally we got rid of it. I hope this helps. C

www.mybiopro.com/claudia13 (learn how to protect your children form cell phone and tv radiation).

Hi I too am a stay at home mom. it seems that everyone here runs to the Dr at the drop of a dime. Yea, that is what they are there for but you are the number ine care giver try natural alternatives as well try to heal your child yourself. your child sounds like you need to replace the healthy bacteria that your child is missing in the body email me at ____@____.com and let me help. Remember medication is only a temporary fix they only cover up the issues

Be Blessed

our son began getting ear infections at around 9 months. he finally got tubes put in because we asked to go to a ent. he was 11 months old. one of his ears had a really really bad infection ( it had a weird smell to it before). That tube got pushed out and we replaced it the first of dec. He is doing fine now and his hearing has improved. everyone said how wonderful they were but i find it annoying. you have to be absoultely sure that no water gets in his ears. so were putting wax in his ears every bath time which he dosent like. they do make a ear plug but not for his size. if her ear infection is bad then they will proabley put her on another antibiotic and give her drops. you can only use one type of drops for tube ears and they cost us 100. for a little bitty droper bottle. its little like the entire thing is about two inches ..including the lid. and about a nickle around its tincy. if you have any questions please contact me.

My son had a similar situation. He was on antibiotics for 40 days...they kept getting stronger and when he went in for the surgery to have the tubes put in, they said the infection was still pretty bad. The infection is from the fluid, once the fluid is gone, the infection heals. Im not sure exactly how it works, but I know that within a day after the tubes my son was finally back to himself. He hasnt had an ear infection since and it has been a little over 2 months. I feel for you...it was a horrible time and they are in so much pain. I was so nervous about the surgery, but I just wanted my baby to feel better and we coudnt keep him on antibiotics...they werent working, they were tearing up his stomach and who knows what else and he had significant hearing loss when they tested his hearing. All of his hearing was restored and he is great now. Good Luck to you in your decision. If you are in Austin, feel free to email me...I was very pleased with the ENT who did my sons surgery...I would recommend him.

E.

Hi A.K
How miserable for you both. I would suggest looking at your household cleaning items for chemicals- it is proven by lots of research that these chemicals can cause some illnesses.......then have you had your little one checked for allergies??? This was the thing for my two youngest boys- constant ear aches and upper resporitory infections and mostly in the summer- unusual- because in winter they were never sick- the culpret- cholorine from the pool....imagine that- they had a little pool , just a play pool in the back yard that required that chemical in the water- hense- they were sick all summer with ear infections, nose and throat infections......to this day they cannot swim in pools with that chemical.
If you are not using chemical fee products in your home and would be interested in finding out more PM me and I can send you to a link with references.
I don;t sell products but am very cautious about what comes into my home.
Good Luck

Your child will continue to get ear infections until you find the cause. Tubes only help the problem they do not work on the cause. Research FOOD intolerance, not food allergies. Contact me and I will help you find the problem and help you fix the problem.

Between 6 months and a year, my daughter was on 6 rounds of antibiotics. She had tubes put in when she was 13 months (mid-June), and for the next 5 1/2 months we had no problems. Then one of the tubes fell out after Thanksgiving, and she's already had an ear infection and two rounds of antibiotics since then, and still has fluid (not infected, though). If she has one more infection this winter (which is extremely likely), she'll have the tube put back in. When considering the tubes the first time, her ENT put it this way: for half of her life, she's been in pain from ear infections. Also, I felt really confident in our ENT's recommendation to have tubes put in because I had heard from several other parents that he doesn't push to do tubes when he doesn't think it's really necessary: he recommended to two of my friends just to wait and see, and neither of their kids ended up needing tubes.
When they go in to do the surgery, they will drain all of the fluid out of the ear before putting the tube in. For a week or two after the surgery, you will put some antibiotic ear drops in each ear. After that, you will generally know when she has an ear infection because there will be green gunk draining out of her ear or her finger will be wet when she pulls it out of her ear (gross, but at least an obvious sign!), and you will start using the antibiotic drops again. If that doesn't clear it up in a week, you can call the ENT for a round of oral antibiotics. My daughter only had to use the drops once while she had the tubes in, and didn't need the oral round (until after one of the tubes fell out, anyway). Also, like Karen said, the surgery is very fast. My daughter was only out of the room for 5 minutes or so before they brought her back to me.
I hope that answers some of your questions and reassures you about what they will be doing if your daughter does need the surgery.

My son had the same problem, but his dr just kept giving him antibiotics then they said it was allergies. He finally ended up with pneumonia in the hospital and a ENT came in and said he needed tubes. 2weeks after he got out of the hospital he had the tubes put in and it was an instant change. He no longer was sick or had any ear problems and he started speaking clearer.(He had a speech delay due to the ears) My son is about to be 8 and has his 2nd set of tubes in his ears. I truly believe they help out tremendously. Unfortunately, because they waited so long to put the first set in it resulted in him needing a second set. I highly recommend that if she needs them that you not wait and get them put in. The procedure is quick and painless. If you have any questions or need anything please let me know.

I used to see a chiropractor for my lower compressed vertebrae and he kept a binder in his waiting room filled with letters from other clients. I'd say about 80% of the letters were from parents of children with chronic ear infections. All of them said one thing: the chiropractic work had helped get rid of their child's ear infections.
I am by no means a spokeswoman for chiropractors, but I do know that I understand the concept behind it and if my daughter ever started to have chronic ear infections, I would definitely take her to a chiropractor to see if they could help before putting tubes in.

Good Luck!

Avoid tubes for just 1 ear infection.

I'm not a big fan of the tubes. We almost had to put one in my now 5 year old dt when she was a bit over 12 months. She had already had 6 ear infections b4 she hit 1yr. We didn't go through with it bc the infections slowed down after that. But the info that I want to share is that the ear infection is caused by too much drainage/mucus that has settled in the ear canal. You and your ped should try to determine what's causing your child to have so much drainage. Typically it is an allergy to something that is going into her system. My suggestion would be to have them do an alergy test. Not too many Ped DR think about this route and I wish ours did so that we did not have to put my child on so much antibiotics. The thought is, if you eliminate the cause of her drainage then this should eliminate the ear infection which should lead to the fact that you should not have to do the tubes. The tubes are not a guarantee that the infections will go awayt. They come off, and its an invasive procedure no matter how routine it may be for the ENTs. Ask your DR to order an allergy test on your child and it they don't find anything then at least you'll feel that you've tried other options b4 putting them through the invasive procedure.
As for the chiropractor, I'm not sure about that. I go to one on a regular basis and he did not guarantee me that if I had brought my child in that that would cure/eliminate the ear infection. So just a thought.

I am a young mother that has worked with young children in elementary school. the best advice I could give you is that if you are on the 3rd dose of medication and there is no improvement then your daughters body has become amune to the antibiotics. If you don't go through with the ear tubs your daughter could have permanent hearing loss and start to speak poorly leading to speech therapy and other problems with understanding other poeple/ kids down the road. I know of four kids that have had the sergery and it was the best chioce that their parents could have made for them. I have also helped with children that are battling the fight to hear because their parents dont want to my the chioce to get the procedure done. They are in alot of pain; loud sounds hurt thier ears, constant runny noses, unable to hear what someone is saying to them even if yo are standing infront of them so they can see your lips talking. Also if you do chose to go along with the operation they're ears are still extremly tender to the wind and to cold weather.
I was breifly reading through mamas source and read your letter. I am not a doctor but these are just part of the situations and problems I have seen children and thier parents deal with. I hope your doctor will help you make the best chioce.

I would definately take her to an ENT. My daughter (who is 12 now ) went through this from the age of 2. We did tubes at the age of 3. I didn't want to jump into a surgery for my child ,so we waited and checked her every month . ( she had fluid behind her eardrum that wouldn't go away). I am not sure how they will remove the infection ( which I think is fluid in the ear) but I think they could suction it out.
It is a hard decision to make,but might be a neccessary one.
Also, just b/c your pedi suggets going to an ent doesn't automatically mean surgery. Look at it as a way of getting a second opinion.( which you would do anyway.)
Also, don't be surprised if you do go to the ent and they say she does need tubes,if the ent suggets getting her tonsils and adnoids out. Both my kids went through tubes in and tonsils and adnoids out. I have heard of kids who don't get them out when they get tubes in and have to go back for a second surgery to have them removed.
For some reason, I think they go hand in hand to have the tubes work better.
I hope I have reassured you .

Don't wait. We have had tubes in our 4 sons (our daughter didn't have ear trouble). It was like night and day. My 2 year old recently lost both of his tubes, and now has a double ear infection. If it persists, we will not hesitate to have them put in again. Good luck to you!

Our second child had her first infection at 1 month (it would not heal) and her first set of tubes at six months. While the tubes were in place she was healthy but once they fell out we returned to the frequent ear infections. Her infections became so bad that her eardrums were almost completely transparent and collapsed. She had a 60 percent hearing loss in one ear and 40 percent in the other. We realized that the reason she mispronounced words was because listening to us was like hearing underwater. Once she had a special set of tubes fitted, fortunately, she recovered her hearing completely. Dr. Chester Strunk is our ENT and performed our daughter's surgery and I recommend him. I even, gasp, recommend doing the tubes! She is like a different child with the PE tubes and no more antibiotics and ear infections. If, when the current tubes fall out, she develops ear infections again, we are prepared to have a third set of tubes placed.

I just wanted to respond, seeing that no one suggested Acidophilus as of yet. When your child suffers from reoccurring infections and is on constant antibiotic, her "Good Bacteria" is totally stripped, therefore, making her a great canidate for more viral & infections. You have to replace the good bacteria which fights off infection.
Please feel free to contact me. I'd love to email you some helpful info. Your Healthy Alternatives is a Local Ministry in the business of Building healthier Families.
Also, We do have a "Children's Page" on our web-site
www.yourhealthyalternatives.com that might be helpful.

God Bless!

If you live close to The Woodlands - Jeff Chimenti is THE most wonderful ENT. Doctors take their families to him for their surgery (he's also a fabulous facial surgeon). Tell him P. Baldwin recommended him - he's had his own practice for over 13 years. He did my daughter's and my husband's tubes - don't regret it at all. My daughter wasn't talking at 14 months, nor would she pull herself up - once the tubes were in, both occurred!!! (I know each child is different, but my son was 8 mo. old when RUNNING and spoke it complete, understandable sentences at 18 months)

You've had lots of responses so I'll keep it short. My son had ear infections continuously from 6-8 months. His Dr. recommended tubes and he had the surgery at 9 months old. He is almost 3 and one tube has fallen out, eardrum is completely healed and hearing is normal. The second one was still in tact at last visit (3 mo. ago) but will probably fall out in the next year. He has had 3 minor ear infections since having the tubes. By minor I mean slight fever, slight pain, and immediate improvement after starting antibiotics. The surgery was very quick and it's out patient so they go home shortly after surgery (couple hours). Goodluck!

Good morning A K,

My daughter kept getting reoccuring ear infections too. And since I do not like to give my children any medications when they are very young of age. I go for the home remedies. The school nurse called me that my daughter had fever and that she was complaining that her mouth was hurting. I picked her up immediately, gave her some Motrin and took her to the dentist right of way because she looked very bad and was in such pain, she couldn't really open her mouth much so I couldn't really look inside. Although I did get to see her gum slightly swollen. So I thought it had to be one of her teeth that was seriously bothering her. Well, the x-ray didn't show anything wrong. So, then I called her pediatrician and they couldn't see her until the next morning. All I could do at that point is just continue with the Motrin. So, I decided to do the garlic oil home remedy that my grandmother had once told me. This is what I did:

Get some extra virgin olive oil (not to much oil just enough to cover the clove) and smash a small garlic clove (just smash it a little not to where it will break in tiny pieces because you have to take it out from the oil) Let it soak for at least 30 - 1 hr (if you need it right of way) if not at least 6-8 hrs. Garlic is known to be an antibiotic. Well, after the garlic has soaked in the oil for a while, take it out. Then do one ear at a time. Put 2 drops of oil in her ear with a dropper and let her lay on her side for at least 10-15 min just to make sure the oil get's in there. If you can give her something to eat while she's lying down that would be good because it will only make the oil go really into ear canal because of the chewing. Of coarse, don't give her something big that she will choke on, maybe some small crackers that will desolve in her mouth quickly. Cover her ear with a cotton swab and turn her around and do the other ear and repeat. You can do this in the morning and at night. I find it easier when they are sleeping because they are not moving around. But do make sure to cover her ears with a cotton swab or put a towel under her head because the oil will drain out and it does smell like garlic. I did this 5 days in a row and I tell you her fever went away, she didn't have anymore earaches. She felt the relief right away on the very first time I did it. By 9 pm that very same day she went from just laying on the sofa to jumping around being herself again. She said her pain was gone, the fever was gone, she could open her mouth, she was eating. I mean she was a totally different person. The next morning I called and cancelled her doctors appointment and I treated her for a week with the garlic oil remedy. She never complained again and her fever never came back. I still did the garlic once a month after that for the next 6 months then I stopped altogether. This happened a little over a year ago and up until now she has not had anymore ear infections. Many doctors to not want you to do home remedies because of coarse it's not convenient for them. They would loose patients.

I hope this home remedy tip helps you like it helped my daughter. Hope your little girl gets better soon.

My daughter got an ear infection at 3 months and had it until 5 months. She was on 3 different antibiotics and the infection never went away. Our pediatrician referred us to an ENT and she was wonderful. My daughter had tubes put in at 5 months and it helped immensely. She had a lisp until she was about 4. She is now 11 and doing fine.

The ears are so important to see that they are taken care of properly. It will delay so many developmental functions. I had tubes when I was a child until I was 5 yrs old. My biological mother neglected until CPS took over. I had speech delays and problems with my motor skills and reaccuruing ear infections that were so painfull, I would pass out from the pain and my eardrums would rupture with blood and puss until puberty, even after tubes 2X. Now I still have a fairly mild ear infection every year. Before the tubes, I had constant ear infections. After my tubes, had only 2 infections a year that always responded well to antibiotics, but they were still very extreme due to the past damage and scar tissue that resulted. Please do not delay.
My understanding is that many children do not have an ear canal large enough to support proper drainage between the inner and outer ear. The tubes allow for this drainage to occur and in my case for the ear canal to reopen. My understanding is that most of the time they are placed in the ear during a very quick surgery and removed a month or so later in the office now. Mine were removed in the hospital a year later, so I'm not certain about that fact.
A very simple procedure will save your daughter an untold amount of pain. Many children show very little effects on a normal ear infection, but the signs are very apparent. Falling for no reason, running into things, trying to put things in their ears, not responding to noises, of course speech delays, throwing up for no apparent reasons are all signs that an ear infection is present that will happen before the wining and crying even starts. It affects motor skills before causing pain in most cases.
I know that my case was extreme, but please don't mess around with your daughter's ears. It is very simple and will make your daughter much more comfortable as well as preventing future problems. They are tied to many functions that you would not think about.
I am not a huge fan of medicating children for many reasons, but because of my experiances, this is something that I make an exeption for. There is no homiopathic remedy for this.
Thank heavens my daughter has never experianced an ear infection and she is almost 4, but I had one little boy your daughter's age in my daycare that suffered from one for about 6 months. They kept thinking that it was cleared up and it would come back. He got tubes and he was a different child after the tubes. Very active and very clear headed. He began responding to things that he had showed little if any interest in before.
Good luck. I know "surgery" is a scary word, but it will help.

You are right about worrying about scar tissue. I'm 36 and had tubes put in twice. My problem was I didn't get them as a young child. They were put in while I was around 7. I have scar tissue really bad in one ear and it has affected my hearing. My son also had tubes put in his ear while he was about 18 months old. He did great with the surgery and since then the tubes are removed. He is turning 6 next month and has not had an infection since then. Thank goodness! He started getting ear infections around 8 or 9 months. It was horrible. He would get an infection in one ear then it would go into the other ear. Then after all the antibiotics it would go into both ears. It was a nightmare! He was always sick and the antibiotics stop working. The last time before he got the tubes he would have to go to the doctors office every morning for 3 days and get two shots of really really strong antibiotics. It was horrible but it did work. My suggestion to you is contact and ENT soon as possible. If you like you can email me directly and I can tell you about the ENT that he went to. Good luck!