Any Advice on Tubes?

My son got tubes when he was 11 months and never had another infection. He was not able to get enough balance to walk until he got the tubes. After the tubes he started walking the next day. I was afraid that his speech would be affected but all that was alright. If she does have any problems they should resolve themselves right after the tubes. Water in the ears is not a problem. My son played in the sprinkler a lot.

My son had tubes and didn't talk much either. He had tubes for a year and water didn't seem to be a problem. When his tubes came out he started having trouble again and they wanted to put tubes in again. But I treated his ear infections naturally and he never had a problem again...

Hi R.,

Tubes are real easy to deal with and get. My son had tubes put in a little over a year ago. The procedure was so simple. It only lasts about 15 minutes and then your kiddo is back up and playing around that afternoon. My son was back to school the next day. It did AMAZING things for his hearing. That is why we had the tubes put in. He always had liquid in his ears and was flunking his hearing tests. We had the tubes put in and it was like a light switch went on.

In regards to watching the water, you have to watch them for a couple weeks with the bathtub but after that it isn't a big deal. Pools are not a big deal at all. I believe the only thing you need to worry about is river and lake water.

I hope that helps.

Good Luck!
L.

My son was 11 months when he had his tubes put in. The surgery was only like 15 minutes. The hardest part was having to walk out and leave him there, but thank god we got those tubes!
If you're worried about the tubes damaging hearing, you should know that constant ear infections and fluid in the ears can also cause damage. My son had infected fluid in his ears for 7 weeks straight until his surgery, and the doctor told me afterward that the fluid was sticky and "very foul" and it was a good thing we didn't wait longer. After the tubes were put in, my son's ears were still infected, but instead of taking an oral antibiotic, he was prescribed ear drops. That was another great thing! No more diarrhea and rashes, and the infection did not take long to go away since the medicine went straight in the ears.
Anyway, I would definitely go ahead with the tubes if I were you! The surgery and recovery are not bad at all. My son was back to his normal self 3 hours after surgery. Your daughter's ears will probably continue to drain for a week or two afterward. If they drain longer than that, or start draining again after they've stopped, she probably has an infection. One more thing- you should make sure to use some crib sheets that you don't mind throwing away because the ears will drain just as much at night and- at least in my son's case- end up staining the sheets and blankets.
As for water, they tell you to put ear plugs in when swimming or taking a bath...but after a couple of times I stopped because they always fell out anyway. My son never had any issues. Good luck!

I can't comment on the ear infection thing...my daughter never had one, but I know that recurrent ear infections are just one of the problems that can be caused by food allergies most often to milk. I do have lots of experience with food allergies. Just wanted to mention that in case no one has. Good luck and I hope things improve soon.

My son had tubes when he was about 18 months old. I know everyone's experience is different, but we had a great experience and he hasn't had a problem since (he's 6 now). In fact, I think he's had 2 infections since then.

If i remember correctly, they gave us antibiotic drops after the surgery for several days (maybe a week). They also gave us some numbing drops, in case he was fussy and uncomfortable.

There was some time when he couldn't have his head under water, but it wasn't long. And it was lake water they were mostly concerned about (or dirty water). There was some time that we had to put ear plugs in his ears when he swam or took a bath, but I can't remember how long that was.

As for her speech - her speech may be a little behind. But kiddos develop so differently. You can easily request a hearing screen by your Pediatrician, which I would do. Bottom line, she's only 14 months old. If her hearing has been affected by all the infections, you have caught it super early. You'll be amazed at how quick her language skills improve - she'll be a motor-mouth before you know it, asking you how and why for EVERYTHING!

Good luck with everything!

Oh - one more thing...
nothing to worry about now, but assuming your daughter does get tubes, pay attention to when the tubes fall out. My son lost one of the tubes around 4 (which was no big deal). He never did loose the other tube, which had to be surgically removed when he had his tonsils out 3 months ago. From what I understand, if tubes stay in too long (like 5 years!), the ear tissue begins to grow around the tube. I'm not sure what the ENT could have done to "encourage" the tube to fall out, but by the time he mentioned the issue to me, they had already been in too long. In our situation, he had to have his tonsils out, so taking the tube out was no big deal. Just fyi.

Couple of things, tubes are no big deal. At the drug store they sell wax to cover the ear. The individual balls are meant to cover and adult ear so in the beginning one will probably server you for several baths and pool dates. You just flatten it over the ear whole and go and my son swam every day, including jumping in and submerging his head. It is a big deal if you get water in them, since that water has bacteria in it and it gets into the ear (more infections), but the wax really works well. If you want, I can check the brand we used, but it was awesome. You don't want plugs that go into their ears because as they grow they don't fit right and any gaps allow for water.

The surgery is nothing big (except for you it will be very hard on just you). My son was up and playing normally in about 5 hrs.

Also, when they have constant infections they can hear, but they hear like their underwater, it's muffled and not clear, which is why they tend to talk less and later, because it's harder to mimic those sounds when it's not clear.

Good luck

Before going to see an ENT, please try a chiropractor. I have a (almost) 6 month old who has had 5 ear infections since birth, the last round was double ear infections in both ears. Our pediatrician told us that if it keeps up too much longer he was sending us to an ENT to discuss the option of tubes. While I wanted our baby to have some relief, I didn't want him to have to go through any sort of surgery at such a young age, and I definitely didn't want to have to keep putting antibiotics into his little body. A business associate of mine told me her daughter had the same problem and she took her to a chiropractor and has had no problems since. My husband and I decided to give it a shot. That was 3 weeks ago, and things have been great ever since! Our baby's ears drain now, he no longer has congestion, and he's happier than ever! I will tell you, though, it's not just a 1-time deal. Our son had to go 2 times the first 2 weeks and once this week, and now he doesn't go back for 2 more weeks. So, it does take time, but it's so worth it to not have to put him through surgery. Whatever you decide to do, I wish you all the best!

My daughter had tubes put in when she was 16 months. The difference was night and day! She was a good talker before hand but man after the ear infections stopped it was amazing. She is 3 and a half now and they both have fallen out and she is still doing great! No infections at all.
She didn't have any problems with the surgery and she came out of it fine...groggy but nothing else.
Good luck!

I know that many people have had great success with tubes. But there have been studies done in Europe that show that tubes and antibiotics are no more effective than letting the ears heal naturally.

My son had a lot of speech issues, and he always had fluid in his ears. He would also expell a lot of mucous when he sneezed! We would always know where the nearest tissue box was, just in case! A homeopath was babysitting for him one day and mentioned that she had a remedy that would work to get rid of the excess mucous and fluid. I used it for a few days, and that cleared up both his nose and his ears. It was awesome! I recommend trying to see a homeopath before trying surgery of any kind.

I'm honestly surprised they've waited this long to refer to an ENT - perhaps they were trying to see if she could make it through prime ear infection season. My guess is that they injected Rocephin which is a very strong antibiotic, but it won't do anything if she has fluid in her ears which is a breeding ground for the bacteria that cause infections.

Our daughter is 26 months and has just had tubes put in for the second time. She had the first round at 10.5 months. She did great until the Winter when the right tube fell out and the left dislodged trapping the fluid and causing the infections.

Tubes aren't really that bad, and your daughter will be so much happier afterwards. I'd recommend asking their opinion on using plugs, etc. There have been a few questions lately on Mamapedia, and there's mixed information in the medical community. Our ENT told us not to worry about plugs after tubes unless we were going into a lake. Sea water and chlorinated pool water is much less likely to cause infection, and a recent study showed that plugs were no more effective in preventing re-infection.

Good luck. It's a very common, routine procedure. Our daughter slept several hours after each and was playing by the end of the afternoon as if nothing had happened.

My daughter has tubes put in back in Feb , she was 4 and didn't get infections but I noticed she was very loud and not speaking clearly , turns out she had fluid in both ears. The op itself lasted 10 mins , she came round and was perfectly fine ,we waited 30 mins and went home , she was not allowed to get water in her ears at all for a week after , now she is allowed to swim in a pool , play and splash in the bath as normal , the only thing she cannot do is swim in a lake.

My daughter has had two sets of tubes. One at 22 months (just before we left for the Bahamas) and the 2nd set before she turned 4. We use Water Buddies. Our pediatrician recommended them. They're reusable moldable things that go into her ears. They keep the water out.

Whenever she got water into her ears, she would scream. It obviously hurt her. We didn't use the Water Buddies at bathtime, but we were just very careful about her ears but we did use them when swimming.

Now that they've fallen out (for the second time) she goes underwater in the tub and at the pool and doesn't complain.

Just try really hard to keep them dry. Good luck!

My two younger children had tubes put in their ears last June. So its almost one year. They didn't get many infections however they both had constant fluid in their ears and in reduced their hearing by 25%. They also had their anodes removed. My daughter speech was at times diffucult to understand.
Immediately they seemed to hear better. Within a week since my daughter cut her tongue during surgery has speech had improved greatly.
My daughter just turned 3 yrs and my son was 5 yrs when they had the surgery.

My three year old just had her second set installed a couple of months ago--the first set around her first birthday. As everyone has said...only "dirty" water is really an issue. The tube is designed that you really have to have some pressure to force it through the opening (at least the first set). Our ENT used a slightly larger diameter the second time around to make them last longer and he did recommend more precautions. IF she continues to get repeated ear infections after the tubes--yes, it does happen--they may also recommend more water precautions. One Step Ahead has something called an ear bandit...plugs with a headband that holds everything in place.

You will very likely notice a marked increase in her speech within weeks of the tubes. It won't be your imagination. Everything they hear is muffled and will tune out what they can't hear well.

My biggest tip is this...the anesthesia can really cause a lot of disorientation when they first come up from it. The first time around I was warned that she would be "upset"...reality was more that she was hysterical and completely inconsolable. I was there at the surgical center by myself...what a wreck. The second time around, she was definitely disoriented, but didn't cry at all...I mostly attribute this to her age and being able to explain everything that would happen.

Also, my daughter had an active infection the first time around...so there was A LOT of bloody drainage. I don't want to alarm you, just so you can be prepared...since no one bothered to prepared me for this hysterical, screaming, blood and puss running out of the ears mess that was my child.

Get your ENT to prescribe the post-op ear drops before the surgery. No need to run to the pharmacy that day.

Your child will likely take an extra-long nap that day and be back to normal within 1-2 days.

P.S. I tried a lot of natural remedies...chiropractic...eliminating dairy...and so on...and so forth...I just am not sure they work for children who are REALLY susceptible.

Looks like everyone else has already covered info about tubes, so I wanted to address your speech question. It might be something that the tubes will help with... or it may just be that she's taking verbal skills at her own pace. I know it's hard, but try not to compare her to other kids much. It tends to cause more unnecessary worry than anything. (Those growth charts that some doctors rely on WAY too much? Sometimes I just want to slap 'em with it and yell, "It's a *guideline,* not a law! Use some common sense!" lol)
My oldest child had a huge vocabulary pretty early, but my second child seemed to take forever--I think she was 18 months old before she even really used "mama" and "dada"! She still didn't say much more during her second year (that's not to say she wasn't talkative, lol), and her lack of "real" speech started to worry us. But she didn't have any hearing or learning problems, either, and right around her 3rd birthday, her vocabulary took a huge leap and caught up in just a few months.
My 17 month old son doesn't say many more words than your daughter does now (he was actually saying just four words at 14 months), but we are not concerned about it at this point, because he can obviously hear and understand many of the words we use (including following brief, clear directions), and he makes many different sounds when he babbles. He's just not focused on putting those sounds together to make words yet. :-)
He can say (not really clearly yet): hi, bye, dog, kitty, bottle, shoes, teeth, eat, mama, dada, and please (...well, only sometimes on that last one, lol). He will often imitate a sound or word he hears, but doesn't really *use* it yet on his own. For instance, if I get him a juice box and tell him "juice," he'll repeat, "doose," but the next time he wants juice, he won't use/remember the word by himself. He does use several signs, too (all done, drink, water, milk, cracker, more, hat, bird, and fish), but doesn't make sentences yet, and really doesn't seem that interested in words in general. He's just more focused on motor skills right now, not language. That may be the case with your daughter, as well.
All this to say, "your daughter sounds perfectly normal to me!" Your friend's child is apparently ahead of schedule with verbal skills--but then, your child may be ahead in other, less noticeable areas (creativity or logic, for instance), too. Try to remember that if kids aren't doing things at the same point as others, it doesn't necessarily mean one of them is behind. They are likely just taking different paths. ;-)
HTH!

All of your responses were good but I figured I'd let you know what to expect AT the ENT. They will most likely have her get a hearing test with an Audiologist to first see how well she is hearing. They will put some sort of ear plug into her ear to test her hearing (how well the silia or whatever it is called moves) and then have her put headphones on and play games - at least they did this with my 2.5 year old. They found out that her hearing was good to begin with but that she did have a lot of fluid in her ears!

On the day of surgery, your child may be hungry but do not give them any food/drink. Leaving my daughter was hard because I had to watch her 'go under' with a mask but everyone was so sweet and the anestheologist held her and we all sang songs to her (that brought tears to my eyes!). Fifteen minutes later they called me to come back and she was very upset coming out of the anesthesia. I held her and within about five minutes she was okay and then they gave her some juice and a popsicle and we were allowed to go home 30 minutes later.

One of her ears did drain blood - so you should beware of that. She was not tired and didn't sleep any more than usual on that day - she acted the same as always!!!

I think she has exceptional speech but it's improved even more since getting tubes 2 months ago. I have noticed now that her hearing is even better and some sounds that never bothered her before now bother her. Also, she does not like when I pour water on her head and it gets into her ears. Not sure if it's the sound of the water?

We were told that she does not need to wear tubes when swimming unless she is in a lake or river. Pools and the bathtub do not require them, but I think this depends on your ENT.

Good luck and I think you and your family will be much happier once she gets them in!

Hello~As a mother of two who have BOTH had tubes put in their ears-i know what you are going through with the chronic ear infections. Not fun at all. I am sure you are meeting with the ENT to discuss tubes- and while i know a lot of people have a lot of stress over the thought of putting them in or are just downright against it! Tubes are ABSOLUTELY the best thing i have ever done for my girls. One daughter is almost 3 and my other one just turned 1 last week and had her tubes put in just over two weeks ago. My 3 year old had her tubes put in when she was 15 months old and has never had an ear infection since. And my 1 year old had NEVER slept through the night, ever, without getting up-and the night after she got tubes-she has slept through the night ever since. Its such a fast procedure-and very common, and low-risk-although it is a little nerve wracking because they are under a little anesthesia- but i think they are wonderful. I just didn't want my babies to be in any more pain from the ear infections and i refused to keep giving them antibiotic after antibiotic- and eventually like you-the Rocephin shot-which i have heard is one of the most painful shots that there is.
Our dr did it at a surgicenter here at one of the hospitals and it literally took him less than 10 minutes and they come get you as your daughter is waking up a nd you can pretty much go home immediately with some ear drops to put in her ears for a few days....no big deal! The hardest part for me was not letting her eat breakfast until after the surgery because they can't eat or drink after midnight until after surgery and that is hard to get a 1 year old to understand!
So i say-if they think your daughter needs them.....you will no regret getting them-give your baby some relief so you don't have to keep taking her to the dr. Also-about the swimming thing and bath thing-yeah-they do tell you not to let her go underwater and try to keep them dry in the bath-but that is virtually impossible-so i just tried to be careful as i could-and my daughter went underwater several times during the summer last year and her tubes are still in. I hope this helps-but i think the tubes were worth every penny!!!!