Chronic Ear Infections - Chicago, IL

Ear infections can also be caused by sucking on a pacifier I heard. You can buy Echinacea and Goldenseal in liquid form for infants and give that two weeks on and off. That helps! Plus the more antibiotics you use, the harder it is to get rid of them. Here are some articles. BTW my husband had tubes in his ears at 7 months and he is fine :) I know many other Moms that had it done also. One kid is on her third set but does terrific afterwards!

http://www.drgreene.com/21_768.html

http://www.drgreene.com/21_646.html

http://www.diseaseproof.com/archives/ear-infections-ear-i...

Hi A.,
My daughter Emily had them placed when she was about 2. What a difference! There is no special care for them either. The days of using ear plugs in water, etc. are gone unless you child becomes sypmtomatic (e.g. drainage from ear) then you would need to start using plugs. Emily just turned 5 and recently had them replaced as they had both fallen out as she is growing. Both of the surgeries were awesome and without complications. No more ear infections and she is much healthier. Good luck with yours and please let me know if I can support you further.
J. B., RN, CFLC
Life Coach :)

I've seen this condition more and more in children nowadays. Many with the tubes have faired far,far better than wihtout.

Set yourself at ease and talk to your doctor about options,how long the tubes will be needed, precautions you have to take with the tubes(ear plugs for swimming,etc).

Good luck!

Hi A.
My name is B.. My son is now 12 months but he did have tubes put in at 8 months because of chronic ear infections. It has made a tremendous difference. He is all around healthier and happier. He has had one ear infection since and we were told he would still get them occasionally. I recommend that you do it. It is such an easy procedure and it made such a difference for my son. Hope this helps. Good Luck

Hi A.,

I remember when my 6 year old son had to have tubes. He was 17 months, I was so scared! He had had many many many infections and his ears bleed. He was up all the time in the night. It was terrible! After he had those tubes put in, it was the best day of our lives. He no longer had ear infections and slept through the night. Now this is very rear but, does happen and happened to us. I wish someone would have warned me from the beginning! Sometimes the tubes do not fall out. My son had them in for over two and 1/2 years. We kept our regular follow ups with the doctor. To find out he was getting infected because they were in way too long. They had to remove them through surgery (which was no biggie) but, it should have been done about 1 year earlier and my son wouldn't have had a huge infection. Over all he is just fine and no problems.

My youngest daughter has them as well. She was 10 months when hers were put in. Her situation is a little different. Her tubes have already fallen out within 8 months. She has already had an ear infection and going on #2 now. So, she may have to get the tubes again! We will find out at the next appointment in December.

The procedure takes about 15 mins and then you go home after they wake up for the sleep aid. Pretty simple!

It really is a great thing especially when you see your child suffering. I know there are many pros and cons but the over all for us is wonderful.

Good luck!
Take care
Smiles,
K.

My daughter was in daycare also, and had so many ear infections that I lost count. She had tubes put in twice, the first time she was 12 months. The whole thing takes just a few minutes (we barely had time to sit down in the waiting room). My daughter is now 9 and has no ill-effects from the ear infections or the tubes. It is amazing how well the tubes worked, she started sleeping thru the night the day she had them put in.

good luck
N.

My son Carter also had recurrent ear infections last year and the previous year. He had tubes put in December of 2005. The tubes have changed our life so much for the better. We were at the point where he was having hearing loss due to constant fluid in his ears, so we had to do something. Also depending on the age, it can effect their speech development, so its something you should seriously consider.

Carter has been so much healthier and his hearing is back to normal now. We also went to Naperville ENT and used Dr. Rod Caniglia. He also performed a previous sinus surgery on me, so I already liked him.

I know that any surgery can be dangerous, but this is the most common surgery in the US and it is sooo easy! It takes 15 minutes...there is minimal recovery, and you have a kid that is much happier later.

I have never met anyone who gave negative feedback after having this very minor surgery.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Hi A., I just wanted to write that I agree with Dawn. Although my children, (6 yrs. and 14 months), don't suffer from ear infections, I believe it has to do with the way I treat them when they are ill. My children don't drink milk, they drink rice milk and all is well with their development, bones and health. I also give them probiotics whenever they feel a bit sick. I get them at Whole Foods or Organica. They make them for children to chew or you can buy the ones in capsules and sprinkle it in their juice or food. My 6 yr. old goes and gets them herself from the fridge if she feels yukky. There are multiple drops that I've also used. Garlic oil drops work good for fighting infections and cleaning the ear. The chiropracter is also an otption for you. My daughter was brought to one for her first year of life, just to get her body back in balance after the birth. Good luck with your decision.

Hi A.,

My son also had chronic ear infections. He did have the tubes put in. It was not a big deal. He has not had another ear infection since.

That said, if I had to do it again, knowing what I know now, I would have done things differently. I have heard that ear infections can be caused by a milk allergy. I have also taken my son off of milk products.

You can get some ear drops over the counter from Whole Foods. I am sorry, I don't know what they are called. They are natural and from what I have heard will get rid of the ear infection for you. Email me back if you want me to find out the name of them.

Also, and most importantly, if your son has been on antibiotics for the ear infections by the doctor? These were originally designed to be used along with probiotics. Probiotics are the good bacteria. You can also get probiotics at Whole Foods.

Regardless of what you decide to do, I would strongly recommend the probiotics for him.

D.

My 20 month old son has MANY ear infections. His peditrician is suggesting the ear tube surgery BUT I have decided to go the chiropractic route first. Most people don't realize or understand how a chiropractor can help, but they can! I just had 2 different chiropractors exam my son, and they both said the same thing as well as suggested the same treatment for him. He got adjusted yesterday for the first time, and it's nothing like an adult getting adjusted. It's very gentle - about the same amount of pressure you would use to test a tomato to see if it's ripe. I did a lot of research about this before taking him, and I found I was much more comfortable with chiropractic care than surgery (no matter how 'minor' the surgery is). I've had friends and family have the surgery done with success, but others still have to go back to get a 2nd or 3rd set of tubes. The way I see it is that the tubes are just 'masking' the problem, not fixing it.

I know that chiropractic care isn't the 'norm', but it's definitely worth checking into. Good luck! I know those ear infections are not fun!!

A.

My oldest who is now 11 had chronic ear infections. He had his first set of tubes put in when he was 18 months. He still had ear infections for another year with the tubes in. He had a second set put in and his adenoids removed when he was 2 1/2 and has only had 2-3 since. His problem was that everytime he got the sniffles his adenoids would swell and they were positioned just right so that when they swelled they would completely block his canals. The procedure went smooth both times. I highly recommend the Hauser Ross institute in Dekalb/Sycamore(not sure which) They let you gown up and be with him until he is put under anesthesia so you are the last one he sees. Good Luck.

Go to www.fightearinfections.com

A friend of mine went there and had great success.

my son had an ear infection that last just about 4 months!! it was horrible. he had tubes put in at just over a year old. Can't even begin to tell you the difference that it made. The surgery was hard for me, but a breeze for my little guy, he was home and playing by noon. Good luck

My daughter had her first set of tubes @ 17months, 2nd set @3 along with her adnoids out, and her tonsils out at 5. I would recommend them to every person. In fact I think they should be put in as preventive medice. Having them in changed are lives. It gave me a little girl who could hear me & talk to me. It is a very quick surgery and he will up and playing later that day. It does suck to have a stanger take your child out of your arm. The recovery room is hard. Be sure to bring a bottle, sippy, paci, anything that will soothe him. He will be scared and in a little bit of pain. The other thing is bring a towel for the car on the way home. My daughter threw up all three times in the car on the way home.Let me know if you need any other advice. ____@____.com

Oh 17M son had them put in the day before his 1st bday party (45 people there) and he was 100% fine. I swear, we saw a MARKED improvement in his hearing that very weekend.

The parts that suck:

1. Having your little one wheeled away for the procedure. Luckily, Jacob was sitting up just looking at everyone. It was so hard not to be able to be in there with him. But it's SOOOO quick!

2. The fricken ear plugs. You need to use them and they are a pain to deal with. We got the custom fit ones and they are still a pain in the butt.

Overall, we are so happy. Going on 5 months and only 1 ear infection that cleared up on it's own and the aid of some drops...NO ANTI-BIOTICS, YAY!!

Good luck :)

T.

Hi A.,

My daughter just had tubes put in her ears in September and let me tell you life has been so much better since then...no more trips to the dr. office every 2 weeks, no more antibiotics, and no more pain, no more crabbiness. They worked wonders. I saw a few people on here mention the chiropractor as an option but I know several people who have tried this method and it didn't work. The area that the chiropractor has to work on is also problematic to me...when you child is that young you know how difficult it is for them to sit still and with the chiropractor you have to be completely still or serious damage can be cause. 1 in 2 kids in the U.S. get tubes put in their ears. It is the most common procedure to date...and it works wonders!
GOOD LUCK!

Hi there A.!
My son used to get double ear infections ALL of the time, when he was a baby up until he was about two years old. The greatest advice finally came to me from my chiropractor, instead of my son's pediatrician!! He had told me that most doctors recommend the tubes in the ear and they shouldn't. By natural development, a baby's or a toddler's tubes aren't fully developed yet. They're still too short for complete drainage that us "big people" have. This is why the bacteria just "pools" there and causes infections. And after awhile, the medicine that we repeatedly give our kids stops working as effective as it should, because they build up an immunity to it.
However, what he told me to do was really simple- and it doesn't eliminate them entirely- but it really does reduce them. Every time you give your son a bath, when you're drying him off, gently tug back and down on your son's ears while you clean them out with those "baby" Q-tips. What this does, is it creates the drainage necessary to take the garbage out of there. Please at least try it before you go through that whole procedure. I've had other people try it, and it does work.... :) Hope it helps you and your son out!

B.