This is our experience when our son Jedd had his ear tubes (grommets) placed in January of 2008. Please consult your DR for any additional information. I am not a doctor I just sound like one from lots of experience.

Our son had lots of recurrent ear infections

and they just seemed to be hanging on and not really going away. This was all made worse due to the fact that severe GERD (GORD) present. After struggling for about 2 months the Ped. decided it was time to go see the ENT to get looked at for possible ear tube placement.

The night beofre he had his tubes we stopped giving him any fluids at midnight. They often allow you to give clear fluids up to 3-4 hours prior to the sedations. IMHO that is something we have NEVER done and our son has been sedated 5 times in the OR. This reason is this: the less the stomach has in it the greater your chances are of having NO vomitting or nausiness in the post anesthesia care unit (PACU). Yes you can give the clear fulid but you run the risk of the child getting ill and not feeling well at all. To us this was not an option. We wanted him as empty as possible. It feels yucky enough coming out of anesthesia let alone doing so after having a little bit in the belly.

For a  while our son had a feeding tube in his nose. (He still has one in  his belly, surgically placed) We took FULL advantage of that and asked the Anesthesioligist to please uncap the tube and allow the gastric juices to drain during the procedures. That was fantstic because it gave us an even greater chance of having NO vomitting in the PACU.

To date our son has not  vomitted once in the PACU at all. This is a miralce considering his severe GERD (GORD). So our methods have been proven to work well.

The morning of surgery we arrived at the surgical unit to be checked over by the nurse. We answered all their questions and our son was weighed and given a brief physical. The anesthesiologist and ENT docotor both come out to talk to you to walk you through what they are going to do and how they will be taking care of your child. Our son did not have to wear a surgicaly gown just his PJs. No IV's were placed either.

At the surgeries time start, a surgical nurse and the anesthesioligst come to take the child to the OR. We call it the kiss and cry area. Because the child normally cries, if they are young and do not understand what is going on.

In the OR they get the child settled and give the child a flavored sedation gas. The child is given just enough gas to make them very drowsy. They don't actually go fully under. The child is given such a small amount that they will not need to be intibated with a breathing tube in their throat. So you can see how little is actually used. It's a small amount. In adults ear tubes are actually placed in the ENTs office while you sit there. It's not a painful surgery, they just use the gas to keep the child still and calm while the ENT does the work.

The whole procedure took aobut 10 minutes. At about 15 minutes we were taken back to see him in the step down go home unit. We went home right away about 30 minutes after us getting to see him. That is the minimum amount of time for a child to stay after being sedated at our children's  hospital. Each hospital is different. Alot of times they want the chidl to drink some clear fluids to see that they are up to going home. You need not feel rushed to leave. You should be able to stay as long as you feel comfortable.

Our son was back to normal pretty much right away. He had no downtime. He got back to playing around about an hour after we got  home.

Here is what the ENT did at our first visit:

• Checked our child's weight, height and overall health. Which for our son was extensive due to his previous 4 OR trips.
• Examined his ears for infection and inflamation.
• Talked to us about he procedure and explained what he would do.
• Explained all the after care for when he came home from surgery with his tubes.
• Expalined medications that would need to be taken afterwards and how and when to use it.

 

Here is some helpful advice for the day before and day of the surgery:

• Do not give the child anything to eat or drink from midnight the day before surgery.
• If your child is old enough, talk to them so that they understand what is going to take place.
• Have your child wear their favorite PJs the day of and maybe bring their favorite stuffed animal with them to surgery.
• Reassure them that you will see them quickly after the procedure is finished.

After suregery make sure to administer the medication to the ears correctly. The Dr or discharge nurse should make sure you understand all discharge information before you get to go home with your child. It is important to do this correctly to keep the new tubes and incision infection free. If you do not understand speak up!!!!!! They will not be upset if they have to explain it agian. They just want to make sure the parents know how to best take care of their child.

Here is what the ENT did on our follow up visit:

• Checked him all over physically again, weight, heigth ect....
• Checked the ear tube placement to ensure they were still in place and that there was no excessive swelling or infection.
• Had the audiologist administer an ear/hearing test to ensure the the child's hearing had not been damaged.
• Scheduled a follow up appointment for 6 months post operation.

At the 6 month follow up visit the child is checked over again just as before. The ears are checked again and a hearing test is administered as well. Another visit is made fore the 1 year post operation visit. This is just to ensure that the tubes are still functioning as they as supposed to be.

Ear tubes were the best decision for us. Since they were placed our son has been completely infection free in his ears!!!! For us, the risks were way less than the great benefits we have recieved.

In time as he grows the tubes (grommets) will fall out. Once that occurs, the ENT will let the child go without them and see if they develope any infections again. It is not uncommon for a child to need another set if the infections reappear. The vast majority of children will only need one set of tubes. The tubes will allow the child ear structure to mature so that they can remain infection free once that occurs.