Hearing loss with ear infection

Since it is Sunday afternoon and I can't call the ped's office...I'll ask you all.

Anna has had earaches for the last two weeks or so that developed into an ear infection on Friday. Her hearing has been diminished. I've noticed for the last few days but, looking back, I think it has been happening for almost a week.

Have you had this happen with your kids and ear infections? How long does it last?

[Michele]

Pus is thicker than the normal fluid in the ear and so it affects the way the ear conducts sound waves. I'm pretty sure her hearing will improve as the infection is cleared. However my pediatrician's brother had an ear infection that wasn't treated with antibiotics that he believes caused permanent hearing loss. So needless to say my pediatrician almost always treats ear infections with antibiotics. Hope she's feeling better soon.

Thanks, Michele. DH checked her ears tonight. One is not quite back to normal and the other is too waxy to get a good look. Maybe that is part of it. I've never had this happen to such an extent! I just realized this is the first time she has ever been on antibiotics -- 3 days worth now. She had an ear infection a few years ago and our doctor had us wait 48 hours before giving her the antibiotics and the infection cleared on its own. That never worked with dd1 though.

Wow! I'm so impressed that this is the first time she's been on abx! That's amazing!

I have a good friend who has hearing loss due to a long-ignored / mistreated ear infection. He was an adult when it happened, and by the time his doc put visit after visit after visit together and realized that this was the SAME infection, the damage was done. If Anna was just at the ped on Friday and Eric can already see improvement, I'm sure it won't be the same scenario.

[peggyfromwastate]

Yes, I'm sure she'll bounce back, but next time she gets an ear infection I'd get her on antibiotics sooner... We tend to not mess around with ear infections- you don't want the ear to get worn out and rupture, leaving scar tissue, etc., etc...

I couldn't get her antibiotics sooner. I took her to the doctor on Tuesday, no infection. He said it looked like she was either clearing one or starting one. She did not have a fever over that last week though. When I took her back on Friday, her left was definitely infected and the right was starting.

Still feeling like I work in a nursing home. ANNA, do you want BUTTER on your TOAST?

Talked to the peds office today...they said this could take months to gradually go away. Months? Seriously? I guess I'm being impatient.

In the meantime, we are talking louder. I told her preschool teacher and we'll just be a little more careful in situations where she needs to rely on hearing.

Months? Yikes! I remember having some hearing loss after an ear infection when I was in grade school (it sounded like I was underwater). I think my hearing was back to normal within a week or so.

A lot of doctors don't treat ear infections with antibiotics right away since they are often times either viral or clear up on their own, so it sounds like you nipped the infection in the bud as soon as you could. Hopefully Anna's hearing comes back soon!

[alison]

Oh jeez, this stinks! Poor kiddo! Keep us all posted. I hope it doesn't take months...

[peggyfromwastate]

I couldn't get her antibiotics sooner. I took her to the doctor on Tuesday, no infection. He said it looked like she was either clearing one or starting one. She did not have a fever over that last week though. When I took her back on Friday, her left was definitely infected and the right was starting.

Still feeling like I work in a nursing home. ANNA, do you want BUTTER on your TOAST?

Ohh-- I misread the post- I thought that the ear infection had been going on for a few weeks, but that was earaches...

We don't usually get fevers with our ear infections. Luke got one last Friday (don't they always come down with stuff on Fri or Sat-- just when it's hard to get an appt?)-- but I wouldn't have known except for his screaming in pain... No fever.

Anyway... I'm a little bit sensitive about ear infections b/c we actually had one Dr tell us that he waits until the eardrum RUPTURES before giving antibiotics. Otherwise, no meds... DH just threw up his hands and wrote a Rx himself...

I think, fingers crossed, it was a bit better this morning. She was able to hear me while I was driving and she was behind me. I was talking louder than normal. She asked for the numbing drops again last night and said she feels better today.

I've decided that a few months is just too long if there isn't some improvement. If her hearing isn't better by the end of the week, I'm going to call for an ent appt. It just doesn't seem ok for her to be missing out on conversations and doesn't seem real safe, either.

I suppose she could have had an ear infection in those 10 days leading up to the first doctor appt, even without the fever. DH did check her ears a few times. One or two of those times she had wax build-up and he won't try to get the wax out because the kids don't like it. Maybe she did have one that started to clear up and then came back?

Hopefully the end of antibiotics on Thursday is the end of all the ear business!

[Deebs]

The numbing drops also help dissolve wax. Maybe they might help with some of the hearing issues?

[Meenah]

Make the ENT appointment, better safe than risk long term damage. Of course we are a little sensitive to hearing issues here. Last month Oliver was acting like he had an ear infection and Amy couldn't get past the receptionist in the Peds office. The baby has a hearing loss and wears hearing aides at 10 monhs old, do we really want to wait for scar tissue to develop?????