Tubes in Ears - Pawnee, OK

I have to agree with the doc's on this too. My daughter is now three she has had 15 ear infections between 2mos and 1 1/2 years she has had two sets of tubes. After taking her to a chiropractor she has not even had one in 1 1/2 years. It's like they work miracles.

Some kids are just more susceptible to ear infections with or without tubes. My boys have them with allergy attacks, colds, teething and other things. The one thing you want to try to avoid is alway running to the doctor for oral antibiotics. Because one type of anitbiotic will leave the kids more susceptible for other germs which needs something different. See if you can use the ear drops instead.

Now there are also things that you can do, like no swimming until the tubes are out. Cut back on exposure to other people, carry hand sanitizer with you always and use it often. Especially when in pulblic areas. Be sure to wash handles on doors and faucets every day.

Milk and dairy can increase secretions in the sinuses which can back flow into the ears through the Eustacheon(sp) tubes. Your boys may be intolerant to something you are feeding them which can cause the same symptoms. Wheat and nut products, preservatives in ready made foods, baked goods and pasta mixes were all things we were told to cut out of his diet as much as possible. We did our best to give up non vegetable carbs durning outbreaks.

My older boy didn't have tubes but we finally beat the infections buy moving and taking him out of the daycare he had been in. We had a few more once he started school but by then we knew how to change his diet to get him over it really fast.

Tubes help if the problem is drainage in the ear canal. Do your kids have chronic allergies or colds? I would ask if taking the adenoids out is a good idea. Some kids need that step to fix the problem. Sorry, I understand the frustration.

Hi Bobbie,
I have delt with the same thing with my daughter (28 months old). I just want you to know there are other options. My daughters doctor is a naturopathic physician meaning he specalizes in natural medicine. I know it's a little aginst the grain but it's so much better for the kids. Here are a few things we do for ear infections:

Wet sock treatment- sounds really weird I know. Take a pair of socks and wet them- put them in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. After giving you child a warm/hot bath place the socks on his feet. Put a pair of dry socks on over the wet/cold ones. Leave them on his feet until they are no longer cold. The pain in his ear caused by the fluid build up will go away. The body's fluid will rush to the feet to warm them taking it away from the ear. This is a great way to get your child back to sleep if they are up due to an ear infection. I have done this I bet a dozen times with my daughter. I really works!

Sleep him elevated. Make sure his head is elevated when he sleeps so his ears can properly drain.

Garlic oil eardrops. You can buy them at any health food store.

Behind the ear massage- (just behind the jaw bone and under the ear lobe). Use olive or baby oil and massage in a downward motion to help the ears drain.

Good luck and I hope this is helpful. My doctors website is www.wholebodyhealth.com if you want more info.

I am reluctantly getting tubes in my 20 month old on Monday.

Tubes do not always help w/ ear infections. All they do is equalize the pressure in the ear. This may help w/ the fluid or may not. I have fought chronic ear infections for months because tubes don't always cure ear infections. We actually did have luck at the chiropractor. You might give that a try!

My neice had this same problem. I think she had 3 sets of tubes before they finally took her adnoids out. After that, she hasn't had anymore problems.

Hi Bobbi,

My youngest went through the exact same thing. My suggestion to you is to have his Adnoids removed. Once those are removed and a new set of tubes put it, you should see a remarkable difference.
Another problem that arises from chronic ear infections is permenant hearing loss. Speak w/ your ENT to see about it. Once my daughter had that done, we have rarely had an ear infection.

I hope that helps!

Take Care,
F. M.
Olathe, KS

i was irritated when my daughter (2) kept getting ear infections after she had tubes in, too. but my pediatrician explained that the tubes don't prevent the ear infections, but they do prevent the infected fluid from building up in the inner ear. you should notice that the fluid will drain out, unlike before the tubes there would be no fluid drainage. the pain and duration of the ear infections should be less then before the tubes. have your pediatrician take a look in the child's ear to be sure that the tubes are still in. also it was very helpful to me when my pediatrician explained the whole deal with the tubes, you should ask yours to explain to you.

I have horrible allergies myself and often when I forget to take my medicine my ears bother me terrible. So your children take any allergy medicine The tubes in your ears are connected to their nose and throat. If there is drainage from those areas due ot allergies or colds it can travel to the ears. you might try giving them claratin otc or loratadine (same as claratin only much cheaper). These will help dry up any drainage that may be going down their throat. Also do your kids use sippy cups? I know they are a life saver for your mess clean up but they really are bad for teeth. They also cause the children to continue to suck like on a bottle and that could also be part of your problem. Especially if they are laying down with them. I would wean them off those and only let them drink through a straw or a regular cup. Make sure if you do give them the allergy meds to ask your doctor about dosing and if they can. I would also make sure they get plenty of water. They will need it and water keeps you healthy so that may also keep the infections away!

Bobbie-

It sounds like you are getting some good advice. From a natural/holistic standpoint there are two things that I see causing chronic ear infections in my office (I am a pediatric chiropractor):

1. structural issues with the skull bones and neck... in little ones this can lead to pressure problems in the sinuses and poor drainage (this is why you hear people having success with chiropractic for their kids). To have this checked out, you can find a pediatric chiropractor near you at www.icpa4kids.com (click on Find a Doctor).
2. with my patients who are well adjusted and continue to have chronic infections, we then look to allergies, particularly food allergies. FYI, putting your kids on medication only suppresses the body's natural immune response (this makes them happy and less/asymptomatic, but does not address the underlying problem)... avoiding certain foods can help, or if you determine that there are environmental allergens, you can find someone who does allergy elimination. This is a technique that is gaining popularity & credibility... it uses principles of kinesiology and accupuncture to actually diminish or eliminate allergies. It's hard to believe, but I've seen it work with my patients and my husband. If you are interested in finding someone who does that, please write back to me and I will find out how to find someone.

I hope this helps. Good luck.

Yours in health-
Dr. Alyssa

Bobbie-
I would have to agree with Dr. Alyssa. I am also a pediatric chiropractor. I see lots of kids after they have had several failed attempts with tubes. The tubes are a foreign object and it the natural immune response for the body to push them out. They work for some, but they cause lots of frustration for others.

Please try chiropractic. You might be amazed by the results.

Dr. A.

If I was you I would go talk to an actual ear doctor

I know exactly how you are feeling. I have a 6 year old daughter working on her third set of tubes as well. Her ENT told me that she may never out grow it and may have to have tubes done every couple of years. I have found that once the Tube comes out she gets alot of pressure built up and with her allergies there is alot of fluid that she just cant get rid of and that is what causes her ear infections. I have also been told that if it runs in the family the kids are more apt to have problems with there ears. If you dont mind me asking what did they give him for the ear infection? Also did you take him to his pediatriction or the ear doctor? I have ran into the doctor saying it is an ear infection and then get to the ENT's office the next day and they dont have the ear infection. I would suggest that if you took him to the Peds office i would make an appointment with the ENT. I hope this helps, if you need to talk more send me a private message and i will send you my email address.