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Original poster

Anyone's child had grommets fitted recently? Could you let me know what it was like please?

23 replies

ListersSister · 30/07/2008 22:15

I am wondering about how long the op takes, how long before you can taken them home, any things they have to avoid post-op, when they can go back to school? It will be a few months before DD has her op, but I do like to be prepared . Ta!

OP posts:

Original poster

ListersSister · 30/07/2008 22:43

OP posts:

lilolilmanchester · 30/07/2008 22:49

DS had grommets about 10 years ago, so things might have changed by then. Can't remember how long the op takes, but not long. DS had to stay in overnight because he also had his adenoids out but he'd have been able to go home on the same day if just the grommets. He was at nursery,just had a couple of days of IIRC. can't say whether any of this varies according to hospitals nor whether it's still the way it's done today but hopefully someone will come along who's had it done more recently. Even with the adenoids, he made a speedy recovery, was racing round the corridors on a little trike a couple of hours later!! And no discomfort with his ears at all.

AngeG · 30/07/2008 22:49

Hi there

My DS has now had two lots of grommets, when he was 3 and 4.5. Second time, he was in theatre for about 40mins. He went down to theatre at about 9.30am and was back on the ward by 10.15am. We went home at 12! I think the advice was a couple of days off school (can't remember as DS wasn't at school)

Things to avoid post op are getting any water in their ears. Use cotton wool and vaseline to protect them at bath time.

HTH

AngeG · 30/07/2008 22:51

Should add I don't think he was in theatre for all of the 40mins as he was awake in recovery when I went down to get him!

misi · 30/07/2008 23:15

I thought gromets had been stopped now as they were found to be useless?????
if not, and they are fitted, best to change the diet to, I trearted a well known cricketers daughter for glue ear some years ago, she had gromets but wasn't working so we tried a change of diet and a few herbs. the diet was the most important thing though and she cleared up in 3 months after 5 years of constant probs

Original poster

ListersSister · 30/07/2008 23:19

Thanks ladies. Glad to hear that recovery of likely to be quick...
Not sure about the diet angle tbh - although would be interested in what you did misi -and cranio didn't work. Now looking for a more traditional solution.
I was sceptical about grommets, but the fact they have been recommended despite being less well used these days suggests to me that it is something we have to try...

OP posts:

technics · 30/07/2008 23:30

Hi there, I hope you don't mind me posting but I'm really interested in this thread. DS1 (14 months) has just been diagnosed with glue ear after several, seriously about seven, ear infections. I had also heard of changing diet and restricted dairy (he also had eczema) when he was about 8/9 months (he is still bf). The infections didn't disappear but seemed to occur less frequently. His eczema is practically non-existent now. DS also saw a homeopath but only two sessions as she moved away so this may or may not have helped. I'd be very interested to hear the diet angle too misi, if you have some time to tell us

misi · 31/07/2008 11:44

glue ear is basically the body not being able to clear the protective mucos from the body. the ear needs a constant stream of mucos to protect it from the outside world. when this fails or is hindered in someway, the gunge accumulates and cause problems. 2 main reasons for this. first, you have a pysical hinderance that does not allow the ears cleaning mechanism to work properly, like if you have a kink in a hose pipe, the water doesn't flow properly. second is what the cleaning mechanism is trying to get rid of. the majority of kids with glue ear type probs do have some form of food intolerance (not allergy as the word allergy is misused most of the time, an allergy often results in a violent reaction, and intolerance produces a normal response but in excessive amounts if that makes sense?) dairy is often a culprit as the lactose and milk protiens in dairy are mucos forming, the body makes mucos as a way of dealing with them as our bodies are not totally able to digest dairy. this can cause the ear system to become congested and glue ear is the result. others find the same symptoms with gluten, the protien found in wheat manily but also in other cereals. an interesting case I came across some months ago was an adult with glue ear. we have traced it to his sucrase/isomaltase deficiency problem (this means he lacks the enzymes that break down and digests sugar and (iso)malt. usually this causes bowel problems and a few other things I will struggle to spell at this moment unless I go look them up!! this bloke was different!! not come across that before, but we have cut out not only sugar and malts, but also fructose, artificial sweetners and a few other sugars and his ear is getting much better.
the law says I cannot diagnose or treat without face to face consultation, so I would suggest you go see a nutritionist (not a hospital one as without offending anyone, they are not up on food intolerances very much) or a nutritionally based herbalist. but what you are basically looking for is the trigger if the problem is not a mechanical one. a diary is great for this. note down each day what foods you eat, what your ear is like etc etc etc, note anything and everything and pretty soon you will find a pattern emerging. vary foods too. cut down (or out if possible) a food group each week, so week one cut down on dairy, week two, on wheat based foods, week 3 sugary foods, week four anything else you eat a lot of. as you may have guessed I do not like grommets. messing around with your ears seems dodgy to me but that is only my opinion. cranio is very good I think, but again, not always the right thing. some cranios can be over enthusiastic. my son had a deformed head at birth because of the way he was delivered, the docs were suggesting all manner of things and one suggested surgery but a extemely good cranio in dartford corrected the misplaced plates over a period of 3 months, no surgery, no meds no pain, but for glue ear???? not sure on that one!!

GreenEggsAndSpam · 01/08/2008 20:10

Wow, thanks for all of that misi - very kind of you to write such a long reply and very interesting too.
Would this mucus over-production manifest itself in other ways not just the ear? DD is not a snotty child and is in excellent health, no gut issues either. I am just wondering if it could be a food intolerance as she has no other symptoms at all of this. Her only issue is her ears, and my DH had the same ear issues as a child.

Now, my dd2 I think probably does have food issues (and may have a histamine-related prob I think), but she has no problems with her ears, but does crave foods and have big mood swings. She used to have gut problems and did not eat in a normal way till she was about 3.5.

Anyway, I digress, why is it you don't like grommets? Oh, and I agree with you re hospital dieticians - the one we saw with dd2 gave the most bizarre advice!

chankins · 01/08/2008 20:19

Hi my dd1 had grommets about three weeks ago - she had never had an ear infection, we didn't even realise she had a hearing problem, apart from the fact she always turned the tv up loud, it wasn't that obvious 1

It was picked up at the school hearing test, not long after she started reception.

It was a very quick procedure, very little pain or discomfort after, she had a few days off school as advsed, but really did not need to as she was her normal self.

The effect in her hearing is noticeable, she said everything was too loud for a few days !

No problems so far here.

CarGirl · 01/08/2008 20:21

I think it's a week off school, made a huge difference to dd, she was fine pretty much as soon as she woke up.

GreenEggsAndSpam · 01/08/2008 20:38

Oh, thanks Cargirl and chankins - lovely to hear some positive stories. I really hope this will change a lot of things for dd - she has lived with this with varying degrees of severity for years now - but I am trying not to get my hopes up too high.
A couple of days off school afterwards should be ok then? That is fab news too as she is starting a new school in sept and the op is likely to be shortly afterwards, so the less she misses the better.
What ages where your dc's when they had them done, if you don't mind me asking?

CarGirl · 01/08/2008 21:05

dd was a couple of months before she was 5, she changed from being introvert and lacking confidence to always having her hand up class, her speech also improved (not surprising really).

She had them done on a Wed or a Thurs and went back to school after a week but then it was the easter hols. I wonder if she was meant to have 2 weeks off but she seemed so well I let her go back earlier?

GreenEggsAndSpam · 01/08/2008 21:33

Cargirl - thanks again. DD has coped with it so well that we have let it go on for too long sadly. I am hoping it will help in her friendships as children and adults are finding her so hard now as she tends to just talk at you and conversation is very hard

technics · 01/08/2008 22:46

thanks so much for all that info misi, and the others, its all very helpful and just what I suspected. DS has an ENT appointment next week and it's good to go armed with some information!

CarGirl · 01/08/2008 22:54

cranial osteopathy can work wonders on dc with glue ear/ear infections, it speeds up the process of changing the angle of the eustacian (spelling) tube which helps drain the fluid away and stop glue ear occurring. Never tried it though as dd didn't have an issue with ear infections but have friends who said it worked.

SilentTerror · 01/08/2008 22:59

Hi,am paediatric nurse on day surgery unit,we do grommets all the time!
OP lasts about an hour,including recovery.
We allow home between 2 and 4 hrs after return to ward,as long as all ok.
We advise the next 2 days off school,more from general anaesthetic point of view tbh.
We advise no swimming for 2 weeks,then no diving/jumping in for 8 weeks after that.
Use earplugs or cotton wool/vaseline when washing hair.
Most children recover very well after op and are quite ready to go home within 4 hrs,often earlier.They usually need to have eaten and been up to toilet before discharge,plus obviously have normal pulse/bp,no vomiting or bleeding etc.
Hope that helps and good luck!

CarGirl · 01/08/2008 23:02

yes get some children's ear plugs for hair washing and swimming, they sell them on ebay, get a few pairs especially if they swim at school!

greenlawn · 02/08/2008 12:19

Thanks for all the info, my son has just had grommets as well as tonsils and adenoids out. Massive improvement so far - he's stopped shouting!

Just one question if anyone is still around - how long do the grommets last? I gather they drop out on their own, but do you know when that's happened?

CarGirl · 02/08/2008 12:26

generally about a year before they pop out of the ear drum, dd has finally had one fall out of her ear 18 months later I've been watching it work it's way out for months and months.

greenlawn · 02/08/2008 12:54

Thanks!

Original poster

ListersSister · 03/08/2008 15:20

Fantatic responses - esp thanks to Cargirl and SilentTerror (and you are a paed nurse with that name?! .

I just hope they work...

OP posts:

Lolaa6 · 14/05/2009 00:48

Hi, i'm 18 and i've just had grommets fitted in both ears 6days ago, and up to now i haven't actually noticed any difference.
Obviously this has not been the case for the majority of people.
The operation took about half an hour and I was on my way home about two hours after I woke up. Have had no extra pain in my ears or anything, except thy just don't seem to have worked?
Was wondering if anyone else knew of something like this happening? Or why?

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