my 5mo old daughter keeps pulling at her ear?

Question

she is medicated for severe reflux and on Friday they switched her meds because the others were not working...well this entire weekend she has been pulling at her right ear and she has been having really bad reflux...do you think that these two could be related or does she just have a seperate ear thing going on??

i do agree that 5mo is really young to meds but my daughter has severe reflux and it is aspirating into her lungs..if she is not medicated it can turn in to something really unpleasant that will require surgery..the meds help her eat more..she just know broke 11 lbs...she was 7lbs 3 oz when she was born..and she doesnt have a problem with formula..i did breastfeed her and she had the same, so now she is on a special formula that seems to help a little..

Answer 1

I noticed my daughter, who has severe reflux and is on Zantac, started this around 5 months and took her to the doctor afraid of an ear infection. There was nothing wrong and the doctor told me she had discovered her ears and this was a self soothing technique. Now she does it every time she is tired and it's my first signal that she is ready for a nap or bed. I would talk to your pediatrician to at least rule out an infection though.

Answer 2

I think you should defiantly call your family doctor because this is a common thing to do for most babies when an ear ache occurs. I'm very young, still in my teens but i do know a lot about children and I have learned a lot about how they react to things and what they do when they need certain things. I also remember that when I was about 2 or 3 years old, I had a very bad ear infection that lasted for a whole year because I didn't know what was going on and didn't have the sence to tell my mom so she didn't get medication and a doctors help in time. So be sure to call the doctor just to be on the safe side. But remember I'm still young and might be wrong.

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Answer 3

Children typically tug on their ear because it is hurting them but sometimes it can be something of a habit like sucking a thumb. Call the pediatrician and take her in. As for the reflux......sounds to me like she doesn't need to be on medications but needs a major change in her diet. Peds that put babies on meds like that are not good doctors in my opinon. If she's throwing up then chances are it's either an alergy or you are feeding her too much. Sounds strange that a doctor would put a baby on reflux meds. Just my opinion but there are a lot of people that would agree with me that
doctors tend to medicate first and think later these days and it's not good for our bodies. Do some research on this subject and be an informed parent.

Answer 4

That is a tough one. I would think if she is having an allergic reaction to the new med you would see other signs that it's affecting her. It could be teething, it's a little early but the start of it could be bothering her. Then again she could very well have an ear infection and it just happens to be starting now with this change in med.
I would call the PED and just let them know that she is doing this along with the reflux that seems to have gotten worse. If for no other reason to put them on alert that this might not be the best med for her.

Hope she feels better!

Answer 5

Do you lay her down when feeding her?????? OR AFTER WARDS>???? The most important thing you can do to prevent BOTH reflux AND ear infections (otitis media) is to NOT LAY BABY FLAT during or immediately following feeding her! Keep her propped up! Baby's eustachian tubes are NOT connected like ours and fluid can enter, build up and drain into the ear while eating if she is layed FLAT while eating. Also, keep her uprite at LEAST 30 mins after feeding her, it will also help with gas. Imagine a balloon filled with water and a small pocket of air in it. if you lay it SIDEWAYS, the air will stay sideways. IF you put it uprite, the air bubble will naturally go to the top. Your baby needs to be fed lesser amounts, MORE OFTEN and propped uprite during and AFTER each feeding. Also, YES! YES! YES! CALL THE DOCTOR and let him know!!! Reguardless of whether the issue is seperate or not, why wait until the ear is so badly infected that she suffers with an earache??? Address the issue now. Take her temperature. Usually, ear infections are viral and dont require antibiotics anyway, but neverthe less, CALL your pediatrician!!! and wish you the best of luck!!!!

Answer 6

Both my kids pulled at their ears whenever they were teething. The doctor said something about they can't differentiate where the pain is coming from or something, sorry I can't remember the exact reasoning behind it. I don't think 5 mo is too early for teething, both of mine were about that age when they got their first teeth. My mom always insisted that it was because of an ear infection, but neither has ever had an ear infection, it drove me insane. If she has a fever or any other symptoms call the doctor's office and let them know what's going on.

Answer 7

pulling at her ear, she is trying to tell you something. like maybe an ear infection or something. the reflux, my daughter had that around 5 or 6 months. docs gave meds and they really didnt do a whole lot of good. when she started sitting up and standing and behing more active the reflux subsided and hasnt come back. good luck

Answer 8

I do not understand the reflux- perhaps she is not able to digest the formula? are you breast feeding? I try not to medicate unless death is eminent-- the ear pulling sounds like she may be getting an infection- the reflux thing causing her to throw up? maybe some fluid got in her ear canal- you can medicate again if you like- but you can also try a natural remedy-- squeeze a clove of garlic into a little bit of olive oil- warm it up slightly and put some of the strained liquid in her ear- put a cotton ball in ear to hold liquid in-garlic is a natural ear cure- but the choice is yours-

Answer 9

I would definitely seek medical advice from your doctor since your baby is only 5 months old. You can also check Web MD as they have a lot of good information. If your baby is pulling at her ear but not crying or acting like she's in pain, she may have just recently discovered her ears. If you don't think this is the case, please contact your doctor. Your baby is precious and you wouldn't want any permanent damage being done to her health.

Answer 10

Take her to the doctor . she probably has an ear infection, or she could be teething but take her and explain to the doctor that's the best thing to do!
Good luck!!

p.s.
Keep a check on her temperature.
if she seems fussy,irritable, or runny nose.
you never know because those go along with teething but definetly make an appointment.
hope baby is good