Post-Operative PE Tube Instructions

1. Pain: Use Tylenol every 4-6 hours for pain. Dose by weight or age according to instructions.


2. Bleeding: You may see a few drops of blood on the cotton ball in your child's ear. This is normal. Call my office if bleeding is continuous.
   
   
3. Ear Drops: Floxin ear drops will be given to your child after surgery to prevent infection and keep the PE tube open. The dosage is 4 drops 3x/day in each ear for 3-7 days.   
   
   1. Do not put cold or hot drops in the ear. This can cause dizziness. Warm the bottle in the palm of your hands before applying.
      
   2. Keep head on side or 1-2 minutes to allow drops to go down the ear canal.
      
   3. Gently press on the tragus 5 times in a pumping motion to help the medicine pass through the tube.
   4. Place cotton ball in ear.
      
      
4. Water Protection:
   
   1. Getting a little water in the ears while the PE tubes are in the eardrums is OK. However, a lot of water can lead to an ear infection (see below). 
   2. Lake water has many organisms and can lead to severe infection. Always use ear plugs.
      
   
   
5. Ear Infections: Hopefully, your child will have much fewer infections after surgery. However, up to 10% of children will get an infection while the tubes are in the ear drum. Your child will have a white-yellow discharge from the ear canal. If this occurs during the first three weeks, please call my office. After three weeks, please call your primary care physician.  
   
   
6. Hearing test: A hearing test before and three weeks after surgery is required.
   
   
7. Post-op Visits: 3 weeks after surgery and every six months until tubes are out. The tubes usually fall out into the ear canal in 6-12 months. Infrequently (<5%), the eardrum will have a small hole that requires a paper patch.