We took Em to the ENT specialist on Wednesday, and were prepared to hear she needed tubes in her ears. We met a couple in the waiting area with a 14 month old daughter--their appointment had been earlier in the afternoon, and they said the doctor saw her and scheduled her surgery for the very next day! They gave us a lot of information to read over while we waited, and there were some puzzles to keep Em busy.
We got in to see the doctor, and Em had to lie down on the table and be held down for him to look in her ears. Poor little thing was so scared when she had to stretch out and everybody pinned her down--she started crying, so I held her hands and we all sang Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer together. It was actually hilarious, because both nurses in the room joined in and sang with us. I keep reminding Em that Christmas is over, but she just loves that song!
Anyway, after the traumatic exam, she got a Cinderella sticker and all was forgotten. He said there's fluid in both of her ears, but neither was infected. He asked us about the effect on her quality of life, the frequency and severity of the infections, and when they started. She rarely ever says they hurt and wants medicine to make them feel better--she usually just says it feels like there's something in them, but goes about her business and seems fine. He also looked in her nose, which has been constantly stuffy this winter. He gave us a prescription for Flonase, and wants to see her back in a month. He thinks we have a few things in our favor, including the fact that she's almost three and might be close to growing out of the ear issues. The hope is that if we can get her nose cleared up, the fluid will be able to drain.
On our next visit, he'll also do a hearing test, just to make sure there hasn't been any temporary loss of hearing. It was great news for us, and we're glad that Em won't have to undergo surgery at this point!
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