Ear tube surgery

maureenmce

Hi there!  Hope you're all doing well!  Was just popping in to see if anyone else had dealt with ear tube surgery with their little ones?  Our issue with Rose is not so much the ear infections (though she's had some) but it's that she keeps having significant fluid in her ears between infections and it's causing hearing loss (which can cause developmental delays.)  She got a hearing test today and has 40 db hearing loss in both ears and no ear drum vibration in response to sound, due to how much fluid there is around her ear drum, so we're scheduling the surgery as soon as possible, but I was just wondering if anyone else has done this?  Any expectations for the recovery time?  Our dr said the surgery itself is very quick (15 min) and there will be no iv or anything, just gas, and that the recovery time would be quick, but she was crying during the appointment she I wasn't able to ask a lot of questions about how quick, exactly, and if there'd be any need for pain management, etc.

I'd love any info!  Thanks, guys!   

mamadcb

I don't have any info but I hope it is a smooth, simple, and successful procedure! Hopefully some of these ladies will have some advice

maureenmce

Thanks, @mamadcb !  I'm mostly wondering how much time off work I should take.  Or doctor acts as if she'll be herself by the evening of the day of the surgery, but he actually did surgery on my neck years back and was uh, overly optimistic about recovery time, so I'd love to hear from anyone else who's had this done as far as if it's a one or two day recovery time.  

mhamik

We had tubes done the first week of March when Ev was about 13 months old. pretty much the same reason as you - fairly substantial hearing loss due to excessive fluid. We had our consult on a Tuesday and had surgery on Friday due to an opening. So we had very little time to prepare and luckily it was incredibly easy. We had ours at about 8 am, so no food or drink was somewhat difficult because she is so used to breakfast at the same Time everyday. Luckily she was just mostly curious of everything and everyone which helped distract her.

surgery itself took long enough for us to pour a coffee in the lobby and find a place to sit. It was insanely fast. She had a little bit of a fit coming out of the meds but once we got back into recovery with her and went for a walk she calmed right down. I would say from there out she was almost completely herself, if anything maybe a little extra sleepy. dad and I both took the day off so we had a quiet day at home which was great she took a long nap and then played as usual. We did it on a Friday but she could've easily gone back to daycare the next day.

Honestly, I think she had been so uncomfortable and irritable about her ears that she just felt so darn good after getting all the fluid out- doctor said it was excessive, one of the worst he's seen  that she was happier than she'd been in weeks. this is the experience of almost all parents I've talked to about it as well. Very very easy procedure and very easy on the babies. I wish I hadn't worried so much as it was so easy with such great results.

one more thing, I underestimated just how loud things would be for her. Some places that were loud/busy would irritate her until she figured it out. She was seriously surprised by how loud some things were! FTM so I guess I didn't really notice just how much she wasn't hearing.

i hope this helps! Do not hesitate to ask any other specific questions. 

maureenmce

@mhamik  Thank you so much!  So helpful!  I wouldn't have thought about things being suddenly so loud, though, of course, that makes total sense.  Good to know!  I didn't realize how much she wasn't hearing either, since she's saying words and what not, but she is a very LOUD baby, so that makes a lot of sense, in hindsight.  Glad to hear it's an easy procedure.  I'm looking forward to it being done!  Thanks again!  

BarrettJ89

My son got his tubes at 18 months. His newborn hearing test was normal, as were the tests just before and just after the tubes. He was on over 10 rounds of antibiotics for infections in 12 months. I knew it was coming from the very first infection (I've had 4 sets). I was actually very upset that my doctor put it off so long...
As for the procedure, it was really easy. We were with him when they put the mask on, and it was super early in the morning, so he went to sleep really quickly. They waited until we were out of the room to give him the IV, but the nurse was waiting for us in the recovery room to tell us he was already done! Coming out of the anesthesia was a bit crazy, just because he shot up, and panicked. But they took the IV out, gave him a few minutes to come to, made sure he was willing to drink from his sippy cup, and sent us on our way. 

Eta: he does not have hearing loss, but he does not speak. He can hear us and is very responsive, but less than 5 words at 28 months. We believe he has speech apraxia, but we don't know if it is connected to the infections or not. 

maureenmce

Thanks, @BarrettJ89 - super helpful!  Yeah, we figured it may be an issue too because my husband had like, three sets of tubes as a kid.  Sorry you had to deal with SO many infections with your son!  10 rounds of antibiotics!  At first I was kind of disappointed our doctor seemed to be rushing us toward tubes after just 4 infections in 5 months, but after the hearing test and finding out how much fluid she's holding onto, I'm glad.  

Glad the surgery went smoothly with your LO.  

BarrettJ89

@maureenmce did Rose have her surgery yet? If so, how did everything go?

mamadcb

@maureenmce I was just wondering the same thing today! 

maureenmce

Thanks so much for checking in, ladies!  It's scheduled for the 16th, so I'll post after it's over and let you know how it goes!  I'm a little nervous but anxious for it to be done - I can tell she's having hearing issues, especially in her right ear.  Anyway, I'll write an update post surgery!

kaym6

Hope the surgery goes smoothly, will be thinking of your sweet little lady! 

maureenmce

Hi all - just checking in to say the surgery went well and Rosie is already back to her normal self (and even seems happier not having all that fluid in her ears!)  The couple hours we were in the hospital before the surgery, when we couldn't feed her or give her milk, were the toughest part, but the surgery itself was really quick and smooth.  Thanks SO much for all your advice and well wishes!