To hold off on giving DS these antibiotics?

[loupiots]

DS (3.3) has been a bit miserable today. I put him to bed early, as he was tired, but he woke up about 30 mins later, crying and in real distress for over an hour. He said his ear was hurting.

Phoned the OOH GP and they said to bring him in (we have an all night surgery close by). GP said he has an ear infection, but no fever and prescribed antibiotics.

DS is exhausted and has now conked out aided by a spoonful of nurofen for the pain. DH has nipped out to the late night chemist to fill the prescription.

I've just done a bit of reading around and there's quite a lot of information about mild ear infections clearing up without needing antibiotics, especially without a fever.

Would I be unreasonable to wait a bit and see if it clears up in a couple of days without nuking the kid with antibiotics? I'm not anti medicines at all, but feel that maybe the GP was a bit trigger happy with the amoxycillin. On the other hand, I'm not a trained medical professional, and am very grateful that I have access to those that are, so maybe I shouldn't be second guessing them?

I just don't like the idea of giving him them for something mild and then God forbid, he needs them for something serious and they won't work as well. Or I may just be overthinking it, wouldn't be the first time.

So hard lou, my gp told me that the most important thing with ear infects is pain relief and temperature control. If you are going to go down the no antibiotics route then how about some good probiotics to build his immune system and give him a chance to fight it naturally.

Never give both at the time btw, that would have a counter productive effect.

I am really anti antibiotics after DD had 6 prescriptions over 4 months and was more poorly at the end than at the start! Obviously sometimes they are really good and are needed but sometimes I think maybe they can be avoided if you are doing everything else right.

Good luck, ear infects can be very painful and you would not want to risk a perforation.

Hello - you can watch and wait but if your GP looked in your child's ears and thought that antibiotics were indicated then I would really go with that. May have something to do with it being a Bank Holiday Weekend though!

BTW - a lot of middle ear infections perforate spontaneously and heal quickly - just nature's way of clearing infection. If you don't wish to use the prescribes antibiotics, keep your little one well hydrated and use calpol and peadiatric nurofen alternately to keep the temperature down

Thanks, it is hard to do the right thing. I'd be more inclined to give him the AB's if he was running a temperature, but he isn't. He's 'just' in pain.

Darn it - I'd best do as told!

I would use the antibiotics-the GP has checked your ds and clearly thinks he needs them-most GPs will not prescribe willy-nilly.
You said your ds was distressed, so was in pain. There is not always fever with an infection. If ds is sleeping now, why not start medicine in morning. If he wakes again tonight, I would give him more pain relief and a spoonfull of medicine. Ear infections can be very painful-my ds has suffered with them since birth.

In todays climate, budgeting and the spread of methycillin resistant bacteria it is highly unlikely you would have been given ABs for no reason. Repeated or long duration ear infections can lead to glue ear and treating quickly with ABs is the best way. I say take them. It may well clear on its own, but it will take longer and he will have pain for longer.

I'd take the advice of your GP who has seen him rather than that of a bunch of unqualified strangers who haven't seen him.

Your son won't become resistant to AB's. It's the bugs that become resistant not the person. It's important to give them as directed and finish the course and ensure the infection has gone, so there aren't any bugs left that can become resistant.

Doobry thats what I said. Overuse of anti-biotics without good cause has led to resistant strains. Therefore it is not likely that a GP will prescribe ABs without a good reason. My dd2 has had a cough/cold since November last year and it has never fully cleared. I have never been offered ABs.

spot on Doobry.I get a bit with people on some threads who do half an hours research on the internet and think they know better than the patient's own doctor.

"the idea of giving him them for something mild and then God forbid, he needs them for something serious and they won't work as well"

I understand your concern, but AB-resistant strains don't just spring up because one little boy took one course of ABs.

Give him the antibiotics. They are not prescribed for nothing.

If the doctors prescribes AB's then I would give your son the AB's as directed.

GPs are more than aware of the over-prescription of AB's and I don't think there's many who need babysitting on this point by their patients, therefore they will mostly be cautious in their prescription.

Recurrent infections can occur if bugs are left to spread untreated requiring further and stronger AB's in the future, which is what you want to avoid.

I'm with Katiestar on this.

Why take him to the doctor if he 'just' in pain. And then when a qualified doctor prescribes ab's which most doctors don't just prescribe if it a mild case.

I can't help feeling if the doctor had sent you away with nothing we would have a thread 'ds has a bad ear infection and doctor didn't give Ab's'

Agree. If you had decided in your own head you didn't want him to have antibiotics then why phone OOH and take him to a doctor? Why didn't you just wait and give him painkillers. Going for advice and then ignoring it makes no sense.

My ds got an ear infection as a toddler it got so bad that it damaged his eardrum and he needed a hearing aid.

Stop relying on the internet and listen to your doctor

and yes Yabu

YABU. Give the poor kid the ABs and make sure he takes the entire course!

Agree with YanknCock. The dangers of resistance are when people don't complete the course or if they're taking them all the time.

In fact, if you leave it and it gets worse - your DS may have to take the antibiotics for longer to eventually get rid of it.

Earache is horrible - give him the ABs.

Oh and PS - amoxycillin is a sort of penicillin. If he got (as you say in OP) "something serious" - there are the big-gun antibiotics they wheel out which they rarely prescribe, to ensure they do the job if really needed.

Not that one course is going to build a resistance. If you were doing it every couple of months, that would be another matter...

DS1 is now 10 and i have not given him anti-biotics for the last 3 years. He had gone through a period of 4 years where he had tonsilitis = anti biotics, that would clear up and within a few days he would have an ear infection = anti-biotics. that would clear up and the tonsilitis would return. After he seemed to grow out of both....not had either as bad for 4 years now.

it is a tough call...