My 15yr old son had to have a small sponge placed in his ear to treat a serious swimmers ear infection.The doctor said the sponge would come out by itself in a few days...well..it's only been ONE complete day and it has already worked itself out of his ear.There was blood on the end of the sponge.Did it come out too soon? Should I be concerned and return to the doctor? He is still in pain and ear canal is completely closed still.Tell me what yall think.Serious answers only,please.Thanks. I recently had to take my daughter to the emergency room for a serious swimmer's ear infection, but she was lucky her ear canal hadn't closed up yet. I don't know what the sponge was for as she didn't get one, but the ER doctor gave her ear drops, an oral antibiotic and pain pills (Tylenol #3) as the pain was so severe. I hope that your doctor at least gave your son something for pain. If the only thing he did was the sponge thing, I would definitely go back to the doctor post haste. Request something for pain, especially if stuff like tylenol and advil aren't working. One of the most important things you can do is to understand all treatments, why they are prescribed, what they are supposed to do, how you know if they are or aren't working, when to return, etc. Don't be afraid to ask the doctor questions. Your best bet is to actually think about what you want to ask him or say to him before you get there and write the stuff down. That way, you won't forget when you're there. I'm not only a mother, but a registered nurse. Unfortunately, my specialty is geriatrics and not pediatrics or trauma medicine. Now, if you had a question about constipation, I could probably help you a little better. Good luck to you and your son and don't delay in going back to the doctor. I think I would see a doctor. He may have more than just a swimmer's ear infection, and certainly there is a better treatment than sticking a sponge in one's ear. When I do a lot of harcore swimming, I develop inner ear infections, caused by excess sinus drainage aggravted by the pool chemicals. Get it checked out... again. I used to get these problems. I would definatly go back to the doctor to get it checked out again. If the Dr. gives you the same answer I would get a second recomendation. My doctor told me after I swim or get my head wet I should do a rinse of about a (cup) of half water and half vingar. It really works. Before you do that you should make sure that yuor son has no hole in his ear(I think close to the eardrum) because if there is a hole it will burn. |
