Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Antibiotics?

I've read a lot about how antibiotics don't need to be used with ear infections. Even my cousin that's a pharmacist told me that doctors say that antibiotics don't touch ear infections. They hand them out more for comfort. I don't like giving my kids meds that they don't need, and the same goes for me.

My boys got some ear infections throughout their little lives. They didn't have so many that they needed tubes, but they had some. I'd try letting it go the first night, or two of them screaming crying. Then after that I'd take them in. Their pediatrician is one of the best in our area. I feel confident on his decisions. He would ask me, "How long they've been like this?" I'd tell him the time frame. We also talked about preventative care to. Like for instance my boys now are very willing to do the neti pot. When they were babies I'd use saline spray on their little noses. Their pediatrician agrees with me that if they have an ear infect for a short period of time, they should wait on the antibiotics. If they have shown symptoms for a longer period of time they should have antibiotics.

Yesterday I went to the doctor. He said I have a double ear infection. He gave me a script for some antibiotics, and a pain medication. He didn't much talk to me about it. It's been awhile since any of us have had an ear infection.

I filled my meds. Then went home to read about ear infections.

Source
It turns out that ear infections are just like any other infection, there is a viral kind and a bacterial kind. Antibiotics do not touch anything that is viral. I learned all about that when Isaak had meningitis.



The crazy thing with him is that antibiotics seemed to be helping him get better. No bacteria grew in their samples. When they took him off his meds, he got worse, so they decided to just keep him on them as a precaution. He baffled everyone.

Back to ear infections: If it's a viral ear infection antibiotics will not take care of it. That's why you want to wait to get it treated; to see if it will go away on its own. If it's bacterial the only way to treat it is though antibiotics.

There's a great article that goes over ear infections here.

After one day of using antibiotics I feel better, not out of the woods, but better. I must of had a bacterial infection of some kind. My ears went from ringing, and having sharp pain, to no pain, but full feeling.

Now to take probiotics or not? They have milk product in them. I'm trying to stay off of any milk, dairy anything like that. Antibiotics take bacteria out of your body, both good and bad. Probiotics puts the good bacteria back into your body.

12 comments:

Masshole Mommy said...

We always get antibiotics when the kids, or even I get an ear infection. Contrary to popular believe, they don't just clear up on their own. They get worse and worse until the pain is unbearable.

Matt said...

While it's true that antibiotics don't work on viral infections, where people get really confused is that once a person gets a virus, their immune system is weakened and it's very possible to almost immediately get a secondary bacterial infection... it's taking advantage of the situation that the virus has caused.


As for not getting treated with antibiotics for an ear infection...
I have hearing loss due to these persistent ear infections. They have damaged the nerves and now I hear ringing in my ears when I'm awake. It cannot be treated or cured. I also have some hearing loss to the point that I do not do well in large crowds.... it's all a roar to me.

Years ago, we didn't have antibiotics, thus our infection response was more robust to these weaker bacteria. Now we are several generations removed from that and the bacteria are much stronger.

Some doctors, in their arrogance by playing antibiotics Nazi, are risking your child's hearing. They think that by restricting antibiotics, that they are helping by not creating more resistant bacteria.

On paper they are correct, but in real life it's often a big gamble. They don't seem to understand that your child is born with an immune system that isn't on par with an teen or adult and he's asking that underdeveloped immune system to deal with bacteria that are far more aggressive than when he was a child and went through this.

Like I said it's a gamble, but if the doctors loses, it's your kids that pay the price.

I bet he or she doesn't to this to their kids....

Cascia Talbert said...

I had no idea that ear infections can also be viral. I hope you feel better soon!

mail4rosey said...

Aww, look at your little one's sweet baby pic.


I'm glad your ear infection is clearing up so quickly!

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

Well, in my experience, if you don't treat them in time, you can rupture an ear drum, and then end up with scar tissue that affects your hearing. This happened to me a couple of times. I'm glad you are feeling better.

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

Well, in my experience, if you don't treat them in time, you can rupture an ear drum, and then end up with scar tissue that affects your hearing. This happened to me a couple of times. I'm glad you are feeling better.

Theresa Mahoney said...

Mariah would get severe ear infections all the time, ever since she was a baby. Turned out they weren't ear infections, but over sized adnoids that were putting pressure on her ears. Took them 13 years (not by a dr, but a dentist!) to figure it out.

That's very interesting reading on antibiotics. I also don't like to take medicine unless it's absolutely necessary.

Eat To Live said...

I used to believe in antibiotics until I ended up with candida. Now, I do everything I can not to take them.. I know there will be a day that I have to take an antibiotic to heal an infection. I am dreading that day.

Maryann D. said...

I am not crazy about antibiotics either, but sometimes if an infection does not go away I do give in and take them, but I am glad my family does not need them often anymore. But we always do take the Probiotics and I find that it works and we do not get stomach side effects from the antibiotics.
twinkle at optonline dot net

~ Noelle said...

I would take the meds... You know me and ear infections! :)
Hope you get to feeling better soon.... I know how awful it can be.

Unknown said...

Glad the abx helped you!

Anonymous said...

Highly energetic post, I liked that a lot. Will there be a part 2?


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