Middle ear problems and CF?

[CFTwins]

Anyone ever had middle ear problems with their little CFers? Our daughter is having some language delays and it looks like her eardrum is not responding quite right. The audiologist mentioned sometimes people have very thick fluid in their middle ear... and I thought...hmmm... thick fluid... that sounds familiar.

Just wondering if this is something that my CF team could help with... or just a typical baby problem.

Thanks, Stacy

 

[HollyCatheryn]

That can be due to or exacerbated by several things. One, make sure that you have her checked by a chiropractor. In small children the eustachian tubes out from the ear drums are parallel to the floor and sit directly above the top cervical vertabrae. If this vertabrae gets out of line, it can pinch the tubes and create backed up fluid. It is easily and painlessly fixed. Check for a chiropractor that uses an activator - a small handheld devise that gently moves the bones of the spine without twisting and crunching. It is much more exact than the old-fashioned "back cracking."

There are massages that can be done to encourage drainage. These are not only pleasant, they can be surprisingly effective.

Also, ear candling maighy be effective. I'm not sure about that, but it is worth looking into. Basically, it is the old-fashioned way of removing wax from the ear. You light a small candle, then blow it out and let the warm smoke drift into the ear canal where it softens and melts wax so that is flows out. I'm sure it couldn't hurt to try and it isn't painful or difficult.

Feel free to email me at <a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="mailto:akaeg@netzero.net">akaeg@netzero.net</a>. I might be able to help you find more information on these options or on other non-invasive options.

 

[Alyssa]

I'm not sure if I will be much help, but here's my two cents worth
-- first ditto on the chiropractic stuff -- I agree that it could
help with fluid in the eustachian tube as well as the general rule
of not laying the kids down with a bottle to drink.<br>
<br>
Since my kids were not diagnosed until their teenage years it
didn't come up before, but my daughter did have a lot of trouble
with ear infections, one right after the other for quite a while.
We finally went on low level antibiotics throughout the entire
winter (I think it was when she was about 2-3 years old) that was
the last time she needed antibiotics for ear infections.

 

[3timesthefun]

I never put the two together, but I guess anything is possible. They are learning more and more every day. I have triplets, all with CF. One of them had multiple ear infections as a baby. He has a severe hearing loss and now has to wear hearing aids. One ear was bad when he was born and he lost the hearing in the other ear around 18months. I've always assumed just bad luck that he is hearing impaired and had CF. If you find out there might be some connection, keep us posted. Thanks and Good Luck.

 

[anonymous]

Seek out <b><b><u>an ENT that is familiar with CF</u>. </b></b>The new clinic we go to has an ENT that sees patients in clinic once /month.

Kyra had sinus problems (no ear infections ever), that were finally addressed when we met an ENT who works part time w/CFers. Our old clinic did not have one. We switched to the clinic he works with.

His treatments have kept her sinuses infection free for longer periods of time than before we met him. He instructed us to simply flush her sinuses 2ce/day with SINUS RINSE. It is ph balanced, and is a natural solution - no preservatives. you can even make the solution with a mixture (need to use a recipe) of baking soda (pure sodium bicarbonate) and salt (canning, not table salt).

There are good ENTs out there, not all will push antibiotics and surgeries. If you trust your CF center, ask them who they would recommend. If not, ask the CFF to help you.

Good luck!

Kay
Mom of Kyra (10 years w/CF)

 

[HollyCatheryn]

Though I second the reply about not laying a child down with a bottle, one other thing to think about is that even if you are holding the child and bottle properly, the way the mouth functions to draw milk out of a bottle encourages small amounts of it to flow into the ear.

If this happens in a breastfed child, you have fewer problems because of the antibacterial properties of human milk, but when the fluid is anything else it encourages the growth of bacteria in the ear.

You might check out the books called <u>No More Antibiotics: Preventing and Treating Ear and Respiratory Infections the Natural Way </u>-- by Mary Ann Block
and <u>No More Amoxicillin: Preventing and Treating Ear and Respiratory Infections Without Antibiotics </u>-- by Mary Ann Block

Both are very helpful at identifying the root of the issue and treating the root rather than the symptoms and perserving the child's immune system while doing so.

Dr. Block is at the forefront of the field in treating children whose health has been hampered even destroyed by conventional treatments such as antibiotics (among doxens of other things).