What exactly is tubes in ears?

Answer 1

Ear tubes are plastic and shaped like a hollow spool. Doctors suggest tubes for children who have repeat ear infections. A specialist (otolaryngologist) places the tubes through a small surgical opening made in the eardrum (myringotomy or tympanostomy). The child is unconscious under general anesthesia for this surgery
Tubes can help with ear infections because they:

Allow air to enter the middle ear.
Allow fluid to flow out of the middle ear through the tube into the ear canal.
Clear fluid from the middle ear and restore hearing.
Prevent future buildup of fluid in the middle ear while they are in place.
Decrease the feeling of pressure in the ears, which lessens pain.
What To Expect After Surgery

Tubes can be inserted in an outpatient surgery clinic. Children usually recover quickly and have little pain or other symptoms after surgery.

Follow-up visits to the doctor after a child has tubes inserted are very important. The doctor checks to see whether the tubes are working and whether the child's hearing has improved.

While the tubes are in place, the child needs to take extra care. Wearing earplugs while bathing or swimming will help keep water out of the ear canal. Swimming in a chlorinated pool is generally safe, because the water is relatively clean. However, water in lakes, ponds, rivers, and even the bathtub may contain bacteria. Children should not dunk their heads under the water. Talk to your doctor for more information.

Tubes normally remain in the ears for 6 to 12 months. They often fall out on their own as the eardrum grows. If the tubes don't fall out on their own, your child may need surgery to remove them. After the tubes are out, watch your child for ear infections and fluid behind the eardrum.

Why It Is Done

Placing tubes in the ears allows fluid to drain from the middle ear. Tubes may help prevent ear infections and keep fluid from building up behind the eardrum. Doctors consider surgery to insert tubes:

If a child has had fluid behind the eardrum in both ears for more than 3 months and has significant hearing loss in both ears.
If a child has repeat ear infections.
How Well It Works

Ear tubes often restore hearing and clear fluid from the middle ear. While the tubes are in place, they often prevent buildup of pressure and fluid in the middle ear. Tubes also should decrease the feeling of pressure in the ears and decrease pain.

Tubes may keep ear infections from recurring while the tubes are in place. But, infections may return once the tubes are gone.

Risks

Minor complications occur in up to half of the children who have tubes inserted. Usual complications include:

A thickening of the eardrum over time, due to increased blood flow to the tympanic membrane, which occurs in about half of the children. These changes in the eardrum may affect hearing in a very small number of children. This thickening can also occur with tube placement in children with recurrent inflammation of the middle ear space.
Discharge of pus (otorrhea) from the ear. This is common and can become an ongoing problem in some children.1
Other possible complications:

The tube may become blocked, allowing ear fluid and infections to return.
The tube may slip out of place, possibly falling into the middle ear (rare).
Tissue may form behind the eardrum (cholesteatoma). This is also rare.
What To Think About

Some children who have tubes inserted may need to have tubes reinserted.2

Tubes may scar the eardrum. Scarring may lead to minor hearing loss.

After surgery, a child needs regular checkups to see that the tubes are working. In some cases, the child may need antibiotics to prevent or treat infections.

Answer 2

earlier tubes, the accepted practitioner ought to locate out why the an infection. She could have hypersensitive reactions that require drugs to maintain her passages sparkling. My 7 year previous is on her 2d set of tubes. She had them put in via fact she have been given a great form of infections and while she did no longer have an infection, she had plenty thick fluid in her ears that she had a listening to loss. the 1st set stayed in her ears for a million year and then fell out. The fluid got here decrease back and he or she had to have the 2d set put in. Ear tubes are little disc-looking issues that save the ear canal sparkling of fluid. they're put in at a wellbeing middle below accepted anesthesia. I quite have never heard of long term problems with tubes, yet there is not any assure that they are going to stay in for an prolonged time and next surgical procedures are very achievable. talk over with the expert and notice if he recommends hypersensitive reaction attempting out first. i could in basic terms have the surgical treatment as a final motel.

Answer 3

Tiny tubes are inserted thru the eardrum in order to relieve mucus and/or fluid that has built up behind the membrane; usually as a result of infection. Eventually the eardrum grows back and the tubes fall out on their own.

Answer 4

Penrose drains placed in the ear to help remove excess moisture and help prevent ear infection known as severe otitus media