Ear Infection Odor

Do not stop antibiotics! Keep giving them exactly as scheduled while you also call the doctors office and tell the advice nurse(or triage nurse or whatever your doctors office calls it) about the smell. Ask if you should bring your son in to the doctor. But please never just stop antibiotics on your own; only stop them when the entire prescription is finished or the doctor tells you to stop. The smell likely isn't being caused by the antibiotics but by the infection itself.

Your pediatrician has a 24/7 phone line. Use it. That's what it's for - parents who are worried and kids who have issues on weekends and in the evenings. Don't use it at 3 a.m. unless there's an emergency, but do call at 10 a.m. or 3 p.m. on a weekend day if you need to. Absolutely keep up with the antibiotics until you get a callback from your pedi or the pedi on call. I don't know whether you should bring him in or not - but call and discuss it with the doctor.

ear infections stink.

you haven't given the antibiotics time to work yet. if he has no other symptoms, then going back to the doctor because you don't like the smell of the infection you know he has and are already treating for will be a waste of everyone's time.

i mean, call the hotline if you really think there's something more that needs to happen.

but this is NOT an either/or. you finish the antibiotics no matter what.

as a parent you need to chisel this into your brain. never forget it.

ALWAYS finish the course of antibiotics. failing to do so will set your child up for lifelong terrible problems with antibiotic resistance.

that's a whole lot worse than putting up with a bad odor for a few days.
khairete
S.

You always finish the antibiotics. Just have to say that because that's the rule of thumb.

Infections can stink.

My best guess (having gone through this with our kids, and some of mine had tubes so very familiar) is that when the ear unplugs - and the gunk finally comes out - it unleashes some nasty stuff that was trapped in there.

If it's that green stuff that comes oozing out, it could even have pus in there. I mean, that could have been in there for some time. I'm guessing the Dr dislodged it by looking in his ear.

The only time ear infections smelled for us was when the gunk came out.

If you want, you could call their number and talk to nurse just so you feel better - but I've had infections that were trapped under bandages (stitches) and when uncovered were very nasty smelling. From what I remember, the smell goes very quickly once on antibiotics.

Good luck :) hope he's feeling better soon. He should.

I'd finish the antibiotic and bring him back to the doctor after the medicine is finished.
An ear smell like that is certainly due to an infection - maybe even a fungus.
Keep working with the doctor.

What more can the doctor do if he is already on the medication?

Oh my gosh get off the computer and call the 24 hour nurse line. Ask them. And didn't they tell you to give him ALL the antibiotics?!
Please just call and talk to a real nurse.