Posted on 12/26/2010 9:52:43 AM PST by DCBryan1
Need some advice for peace of mind of the wife and I. We have a beautiful baby boy, almost 4 mos. old (next week) that had a high fever last weekend before Christmas. Monday we took him in and Dr. said that his cold/upper respiratory infection has given him a secondary inner ear infection ( acute otitis media (AOM).
The good Dr. gave us Cifdinir (Omnicef) 3/4 TSP for 10 days and thankfully his fever has gone. However, this Christmas has been a nightmare for Mom and I due to his frequent waking and screaming. His schedule over Christmas was sleep 45 minutes, wake screaming for half an hour, and then take an hour to get back to bed. So for every half hour he sleeps, Mom and Dad DONT sleep for 2 hours.
New symptom this AM is when we went to give him a warm bath, we noticed green/yellow fluid in the ear that he tugs at and you cannot touch without setting him off. We called the Dr. Exchange and got a nurse to call back that said to keep giving infant tylenol and maybe to try olive oil 3 drops, every 3 hours until they can see him Mon 8AM.
This is the same black nurse that said to alternate Ibuprofen and Tylenol (which is a BIG NO NO in <6mos) so of course, I questioned her methods.
I called a family friend who is an ER pediatrican and he said that he had NEVER heard of olive oil as a remedy, but heard that blacks like to use something called "sweet water", but doesn't suggest its use.
Anways, Dr. friend said that we are doing the right thing with Tylenol every 4 hours (0.8 ML/every 4 hours) and keeping up with the Omnicef (Cifdinir) and to just deal with it.
Alcohol........for the parents.
Tylenol for the baby. Recurring ear infections will need tubes. All three of mine had them. Saved countless trips to the doctor everytime they had a cold. Fluid from every cold/fever in head ends up in ear canal. Tube lets fluid drain out instead of pressure on ear saving little ones from ear pain and parents sleepless nights
“Olive oil is a very old remedy and it works well.
This is a baby...My thought is to let the baby sleep on your warm chest”
It’s not the Olive oil but the heat that helps. Even warm mineral oil would do.
P.S. Oil in the ear only helps the symptoms, it doesn't get rid of an infection. I'm not endorsing this, but the old-timers (ahem, like my Mom...for me) would sometimes put a drop of peroxide in the ear, then a drop of warm Oil of Camphor in with a cotton ball. The warm menthol is soothing.
Good luck with that angel, and Happy New Year!
Olive oil might be a good remedy but not when there is active drainage from the ear canal and the antibiotics have been ongoing for nearly 8 or 9 days(”the week-end” before Christmas).
Yes, warm olive oil in the ear with a chunk of cotton ball big enough to make sure you can pull out completely, is truly a good remedy for ear pain and it s perfectly safe.
Here s another one that may help your baby. Heat a big russet potato in the microwave for 10-15 mins. Put it into a clean thick sock. Hold this to his ear area. This feels terrific and stays warm a nice long time. Plus you can eat it after if you like.
Someone mentioned tubes in the ears. This would be for a much older child who is plagued with multiple ear infections. Not for a newborn.
Remember to add probiotics to your child because antibiotics have ruined his immune-fighting good bacteria in his digestive tract. Two easy ways: if breastfeeding, have mom take probiotic capsules, and there are also baby probiotic drops.
Hope he feels better soon. Maysbe take him to doc tomorrow.
Since my kids were 4 and 5 before they got an ear infection, I will not offer advice.
However, I'm pinging our resident experienced mom to see what she may recommend.
I'm so sorry your first Christmas with your little angel has turned out to be not so merry. Better ones lie ahead!
not sure what the color of the nurse has to do with it...
just sayin’
prayers for the little one. Merry Christmas!
Yes, the olive oil can really work. My only child was the prince of ear infections, I must say. He was a preemie and that ear tube was too undeveloped, blah, blah, blah.
One thing others have not mentioned that seemed to help my son: go out tomorrow and pick up an ol’ fashioned hot water bottle. Now, for a wee one, you’ll tone it down a bit (not as warm as for us adults) but....if you put warmish water in it (and don’t fill it up, of course) and can get the little whippersnapper to rest on the offending side. Put it in something, like a pillowcase. If it’s too warm for your wrist, it’s too warm for their ear.
What is causing your little one to scream is not only the infection but the pressure inside the ear (fluids and other crap). Warmth will liquefy them (hence the warm olive oil suggestion) and may alleviate the pressure. My son’s old school pediatrician told me this and it was a lifesaver. The good doctor died in August of ‘08, but my son has managed to the ripe old age of 25. When I last talked to him, 12 hours ago, he was tackling a 6” high stack of Christmas cookies. LOL Btw, if you are prone to sinus infections this time of year, this hot water bottle thing will help you, too, but you can use hotter water.
One more thing...your mom was right. It’s a good idea to have a steam vaporizer and put Vicks in the cup in the baby’s room when ill. Just like she did with you. :)
Also, try a vaporizor....I prefer the old style steam rather than the new cool. My "old time" pediatrician concurs. And when my grandkids were stuffed...it was turning the bathroom into a sauna that brought them relief....not taking them into the cold like the "modern" pediatrician directed. My daughter learned the hard way....from grandma....
Ok, I correct previous message. If docs are saying get him to Er, then do it.
But for simple ear pain without this scary drainage, the olive oil or heated potato will help a child against the Pain until you can get him to the doc.
Sounds like his antibiotic didn’t work.
And he’s as cute as a bug, btw. He’ll be peeing on you when you change his diaper in NO time. Especially when a draft goes through the room.
You will be tempted to be mad, but the snarky look on his face when he does it will make you laugh like hell. LOL
A couple drops of COLLOIDAL SILVER, dropped right in, will clear it up. Whole foods has it, a 1-oz. bottle with dropper-cap is about $9.99. Works to keep bacteria at bay. Shoot a dropper full down your throat once in a while. Do research, don’t take my word for it. I do have experience using it though. It’s like magic.
Beautiful baby...if you have an acute care facility (the walk-in clinic variety), I’d make a run.
I totally agree with the Olive Oil method, with a twist. BUT - I wouldn’t put liquid in an ear that is draining like that right now, I would take him to the ER or Urgent care and see about getting different antibiotics!
From now on though, to prevent things ever getting that bad again, here is my secret! My oldest got one bad ear infection as a baby, but neither of them ever got another one until they were middle school aged (and I wasn’t as attuned to their ear issues, lol!). There is an herbal preparation you can get in the health food store, made for children, which is a base of olive oil infused with garlic (very antibacterial and antiviral) and mullein, a strong herbal decongestant. Put several drops in his ear any time you notice tugging or fussiness, twice a day for a couple of days, until the child is acting normal again. I also did it when they were toddlers after every party and every visit to Chuck E Cheese! The stuff is amazing. It is in a small brown bottle with a blue and yellow label, but I can’t remember the manufacturer’s name. It is from a line of children’s remedies, though. Good luck and hang in there, it gets better!
Thank you for your post. You are absolutely right, in every respect.
Emerg room....may be way late on this post but:
I’m with you. It shouldn’t matter.
I not only had knee surgery, but a C-section, but also neurosurgery. I’ve had nurses of all races. No nurses ever were warmer and more gentle to me than the black nurses I had. I would take them over all the others in a heartbeat. And I’ve been in the hospital a million times.
In my most scared time, I woke up in the middle of the night by mistake (they had given me medicine to rest) and my nurse was sitting right next to my bed. She borrowed the National Enquirer that my sister brought to me (long funny family story) and was reading it to pass the time, while watching over me. And she was holding my hand, thinking I was asleep. It was a comfort I can’t even explain to you.
My daughter was good for 3-4 ear infections every winter. It’s really nothing to fool around with as it can cause permanent hearing loss. My advice would be to get that cute little one to an immediate care clinic today.
A friend of mine went deaf. He had been treated for an earache and it had come back....He called his doctor complaining of pain....but couldn't get an appointment right away. The INFECTION burnt the nerves in his ears and he is totally deaf.
Don't be afrid to jump start the system...Those extended care facilities are awesome.
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