16 Month Old Needs Tubes

Hi B.,
We used an ENT with Cook's Medical Center, his name was Dr. Todd Samuelson. He was wonderful and so was his office staff. My 4yr old had his tubes, adnoids and tonsils done this past June and my son does not like doctors and still talks about Dr. Samuelson. Good luck.

Dr. Mark Palmer in Fort Worth is the BEST!! My son had tubes placed and we have had no problems. Once the tubes are placed, that fluid can drain and you really do get less infections.

B.-
My son had 10 infections in a year. At his 18 month checkup, we decided it was time to act. We went to John McClay. He is wonderful- I am a nurse, so I know him from working with him at Children's Medical Center, as well as from a mommy's perspective. He also offices at Presby Plano, if that is closer. Anyway, the procedure itself takes less than 10 minutes. We do not have to use ear plugs unless we get into a lake or the ocean. He printed a study out for me to show that plugs are not necessary in "clean" bodies of water. After the tube placement, we have had only 2 colds, and neither one involved the ears. And did I mention his new found Language skills??? (This is the exciting part) Before the tubes were placed, my son at 18 months would say ,"Pancakes" when he wanted some. About 3 weeks after the tubes, it turned into, "I want pancakes,too, Mommy". I accused Dr McClay of placing a "genius microchip" into Mitchell, along with the tubes.

Good Luck!!!
T.

We went throuh the tube thing when my son was 6 months old. I can honestly tell you he is much happier baby now, without all the fluid in his ears. Plus, we noticed a strong improvement in his hearing. The day he had his surgeryand the day or two after, he would startle at noises he should have been hearng his whole life (the formula can on the counter, the front door closing, etc.) The actual surgery was very quick, however the anethesia made him VERY fussy. But we have had to put him under before and he had the same response, so I know it was the anethesia and not the procedure. We used Dr. Burkett in FW. He was very nice and did a good job (as far as I can tell!)

My daughter has tubes and the only CON's for me is everytime she gets in water,ie. swimming pool and bath tub, I have to insert ear plugs to prevent water entering her ear. It's more of hassle for me! (lol) Pro's are, her infections have gone from 2 each month, to NONE for the last two years! Remember every child is different! But, It was the best decision I ever made!

Hi,
Tubes were a blessing for my son. He had 6 ear infections in his first 8 months of life. He got tubes at 9 mos. old. He has had only 1 since then and he is 2 1/2 years old now. The procedure lasts only 5-10 minutes, my boy took a 3 hour nap after his surgery later that day and has been a new boy ever since. The tubes worked great. They say that the tubes last 6mos to 1 year. His fell out after about 2 years and we have not had any problems since. The tubes were the best decision for us.

Good luck!

My daughter got tubes at 14 months after a series of infections. Best thing we ever did for her! All pros, no cons. Our ENT is in Plano, so too far for you, but Dr. Gamble is terrific.

One thing to know, the Anesthetist (sp?) will ask you about giving the baby something to "relax" him before he goes into the surgery. It does relax the child, and make them a bit giggly and sleepy before they go in, but with my daughter, she screamed for 2 hours after the surgery and the nurses said it was that first drug. My daughter needed to have her tubes replaced this spring, and we did not use the relax drug first. She was absolutely fine going into the surgery and absolutely fine coming out. She had the same Anesthetist both times and the second time I told her I did not want that drug, and she was totally great about it. (Really, it makes their job easier, not yours!)

They are a bit groggy when you get home and then all of a sudden you are looking at this happy, playing child and thinking Did they just have surgery today?

Hi B.,
My daughter had tubes put in right before her 2nd B'day. We too went to Dr. Robert Burkett in FW and he's awesome, as well as his staff. My daughter had 9 ear infections in a very short amount of time and they were so bad her eardrum would burst with green slime <pus>, it was terrible!! She was also losing her hearing in one ear because of all the infections. Sad thing was we didn't know she even had an ear infection until it burst. She was never cranky or fussy until the night before it would burst. We had the surgery @ Cooks and they were great. My daughter has had two surgeries there and we couldn't ask for a better staff. They only thing we had to do was insert the earplugs when she bathed or swam. We liked the wax kind that you could mold to the shape of their ears (available @ any drugstore). After a year we went back to Dr. B because we weren't sure if they had fallen out, and one had <who knows what happened to it!> and he removed the other. Piece of cake! I would strongly recommend Dr. Burkett and the staff @ Cooks. I also know a great pediatric opthamologist too if you're ever in the market! ;) Good luck!

My son just last month got tubes put in by Dr. Baur in Coppell. The surgury was at the pediatric surgury center in Plano. He also has changed dramatically and his speech as taken off. He too has had at least 6 ear infections since March. I am hoping that now it is over with the ear infections. Good luck and the surgury is 5 minutes and no big deal. They put them under with laughing gas and so they wake up quickly after it is done. We were in and out of the hospital in 2 hours total. Good Luck!

Hi- Our son and daughter both needed tubes. The surgery is fast and easy, and neither of them have had an ear infection since! It also helps with flying- they don't get the pain in their ears anymore. Some doctors make you wear ear plugs when swimming in a pool (ours doesn't) but all doctors agree on the need if swimming in the ocean or a lake, pond, etc. We used Dr. Noell- she has several offices- I know one is in Bedford. She did the surgery at a Cook's childens surgery center. Good luck!

I def reccommend them. Its a quick 10 min procedure and they are out. My daughter had a bad earinfection and the fluid woulndt go away so we had them put them in....she never had another one and really took the stress out of worrying about getting one and having such a sick baby. The only thing I can even think of that was a downfall is you have to go monthly (or we did at least) and then after that every few months for a check up to make sure they are still there. I got lucky and hers stayed in for almost 2 yrs (normally do for at least 1 yr). Well good luck and I hope your kiddo get some relief as well as you! We used Dr. Strange (he is on 8th Ave ...dont have the # on hand...but he is really good w/ kids and very funny. We always got in w/in 5 min of getting there and he makes the visit as fast as possible as well.

Everyone I know hose kids have gotten tubes says "It's like he's a different kid." The procedure takes no time at all (literally about 2 minutes, or at least it seems that way) and you will see a difference immediately.

Another thing to ask the ENT about though is dairy products. I know of soooo many kids and adults who fought chronic sinus and ear infections only to find out the cause of all the congestion, etc. was an allergy to milk protein. I'm not sure why pediatricians are so reluctant to identify milk allergies (except when it causes intestinal distress) but I'm telling you that me, both my kids, and about a dozen friends and their kids all have had the same problem.

I went to Dr Burkett (sp?) when I was little, and he is still practicing and a great dr. he did a former coworker's kids tubes, and they loved him too. he used to be affiliated with Cook Childrens, but am not sure where he is now. Good luck.

Hi B.,
I work in an ent office, and the outcomes are great. If your doc. in ft worth doesn't work out, I would highly recomend Dr.Trone. He was acctually one of the Docs. that assisted in seperating the simase twins a while ago. He is located in Medical City of Dallas. Just let me know if you need some extra info!

I know a lot of parents whose kids needed tubes. I've yet to meet one that found a con to the tubes - they all love them. While infections can still happen, they happen much less frequently, if at all. The tubes do sometimes need to be cleaned a little (a bit of gunk will come out, which would have previously caused an infection, but is now drainage), but it's not too bad - a quick fingernail swipe.

The procedure is very quick - about 15 minutes. Every parent I've talked to just wished they got them sooner, because their kids were so much happier and more comfortable!

My oldest had tubes when he was 18 months old, best thing I ever did. He started talking a LOT better after that. He had 16 ear infections in his first 18 months.

B., I have 3 girls and the first two had tubes and one had tonsils out. My third daughter started down the same track and a friend told me about Melaleuca products. I converted my home to them and we have never been back to the doctor for an ear infection since. Let me know if you want info. in it. It really does work. It cleared up my daughter's athsma attacks too. N. ____@____.com

I would definitely say DO IT, DO IT,DO IT! My son is now 16 months but when he was 13 months he had his tubes put in his ears. He had about 9 ear in infections in 4 months, basically everytime I turned around. He was on soy formula because of acid reflux that he had from 7 wks of age.
He could take any diary for 6 wks prior to surgery then after the surgery i started giving him milk,cheese,etc and didn't do too well cause his body wasn't used to it. I gradually eased him into the dairy and he now does fine and still to this day has not had any ear infections or had any colds.
He is definitely a happier baby and so am I.

I went to Dr Amy Coffey and she is AWESOME! She is located in Plano Presbyterian. The surgery only took about 5-10 min but the after affects was the HARDEST part for my son and me too. Everything was a lot louder for him and it freaked him out cause he had a lot of hearing loss in his ear, It didn't take too long for him to get over that part though. If I had to do it all over again I would no questions asked.

Good Luck!
You will be glad you did it.

I'm 35 and I had tubes as a young child. I don't remember anything except going in for surgery (twice -- because one fell out) and not being able to swim or get water in my ears. I had just started swimming lessons before I got tubes and was so worried that something would happen if I got water in my ears that I refused to swim. I think I was 4-5 years old. I had ear plugs, but still was worried about it (I was a very cautious child). I had to start over with swimming once I was done with the tubes, which seemed like a big deal at the time, but I swim fine now. :)

I rarely have ear infections now and have always had great hearing. I don't think there are any medical cons of having tubes. Not sure why they're called tubes, because if I remember correctly, they were more like little beads.

With a 16 month old, you won't have to worry as much about him remembering any of it.

Good luck.

S.

My son got his tubes at age 1. He had ear infection after ear infection. We got his tubes, brought him home for a nap...and when he woke up, I could completely tell the difference. He was a new child..you could tell he was much happier. He's had his tubes for over a year now, and he's doing great! Our ENT was in Frisco..

DO IT DO IT DO IT. I can't say enough good things about getting them. In fact my two boys had them and I have already asked how old my unborn baby has to be before we can put them in.

It's fast, painless, and you will see near immediate positive results.

Hi, There:

My 31 month old is about to receive his 3rd set of tubes, but he's an unusual case (cleft lip/palate child). The Eustachian tubes in cleft kids don't work very well because the small muscle that opens and closes the tubes connects to the muscles in the soft palate, which are either cleft, or, if repaired weak. Anyway, in my son tubes are absolutely necessary, since his ears fill quickly with fluid (usually UN-infected), and he experiences significant conductive hearing loss. We actually went to our ENT yesterday and found out the set he had placed in February (by a different ENT) had fallen out and were sitting in his ear canal.

The surgery is a 30 minute out patient procedure. Daniel was fine immediately after his surgery in February, and went back to preschool the next day. He's had no complications since. We are on our 3rd ENT, however. The first was a total quack, the second left our insurance program, and I LOVE this guy. If you're interested in a second opinion, he's in Dallas at Presbyterian hospital (off I-75 at Walnut Hill) and his name is Dr. Gary Goldsmith.

Best!

L.

All I can say is that I wished we would have done it sooner. Her first ear infection was at 4 months and we had tubes in at 12 months. She had 8 infections... seemed they would clear up and then hit again. Since then, nothing of the sort. She is now 13 1/2 months. Seems so weird to not have called the Dr to see her about an infection, but we can live with that weirdness! We used Dr. James Leffingwell out of Arlington Memorial. He was wonderful and so was his staff. Very quick procedure.. best of luck to you

both of my kids have had tubes and they were a godsend. my son had them at about 19mos, my daughter just shy of 1. the pros are no ear infections, feel better, no meds, most importantly they can hear at a critical time... when they are learning to speak. they need to hear an f sound, s sound etc or speech issues may develop... from the mouth of my pediatrician and allergist. i struggled with it the first time, the second time around i knew we needed to do it. good luck! you won't regret it. the only con is putting them under and it was like a 5min surgery