Do You Need to Have Ear Tubes Inserted?
Is your child complaining of having ear pain? Is your child getting ear infection quite regularly? If your answers to the questions are yes, your child may need an ear tube prescribed by an ear doctor in OKC. An ear tube is medically known as tympanostomy. It is installed inside your child’s ear so that their chronic ear infections can be treated. Even though ear tube is used to treat children’s ear infection, it can also help you if you have serious ear infection.
The Surgical Process:
Inserting an ear tube into the ear is a surgical process. Your ear doctor will make a small incision in your ear drum. Then they will insert an ear tube that is medically known as PE tube inside the ear canal through your ear drum. The tube helps in draining out fluid that may have accumulated because of your ear infection. It also helps in equalizing pressure. Once the incision starts healing, the tube will automatically fall out.
Do you require ear tube?
Your ear doctor may suggest you have tympanostomy if you have the following symptoms:
Chronic ear infection: One of the most common reasons that might lead you to getting an ear tube inserted is getting chronic ear infection. Chronic infection will cause swelling and accumulation of fluid inside your ears. If the irritation keeps coming back even after treatment, the infection can cause hearing loss.
Abnormal Eustachian tubes: You may not even realize that your child’s Eustachian tube is not fully developed. The tubes may be narrower than they should be. The tube inside our ear goes through the back of your throat. It helps relieve pressure and draining fluid from your air. If the tube is too narrow, fluid gets trapped. This can lead to your child having ear infection. As a result, your child’s ear doctor may recommend getting tympanostomy.
Barotrauma: Barotrauma is a term that may happen if you have damaged your ear drums due to a sudden change in air pressure or water pressure. This is a common scenario if you are a scuba diver or if you work in aviation industry and need to fly often.
Apart from these symptoms, you may also need tube inserted in your ear if you have balance issues or you have experienced temporary hearing loss. No matter what the problem with your ear is, you must see an experienced ear doctor. OKOA is an association of skilled otolaryngologists who have more than three decades of experience in treating ear problems.
**Disclaimer: The information on this page is not intended to be a doctor's advice, nor does it create any form of patient-doctor relationship.