My 9 month old daughter has had severe nasal congestion since birth. The doctor always said it is normal and she'd get better in the summer when it wasn't as cold. Well now she's just as bad and possibly worse. We administer saline a few times per day which is only a temporary fix. She also recently got over a cold and is still battling a double ear infection - after 10 days on amoxycillin she is still rubbing and messing with her ears. I'm thinking the two are definitely connected and the amoxy may not of helped and I don't know how to help her at this point. My poor, helpless, tiny peanut is so uncomfortable and it kills me. She sometimes sniffs so intensely like she's trying like crazy to clear her nasal passages then goes back to scratching the inside of and rubbing the outside of her ears! Has anyone else dealt with this type of issue? Thanks so much for any advice - you all have been so helpful in the past with your suggestions/tips so thank you in advance!
Thanks to all of you for the great advice. I took my daughter to an ENT yesterday and he gave her a clean bill of health. The fluid is now cleared up and he said she's in great shape. He chalked up the ear rubbing to teething! I was shocked that this is all it could be. She's still congested so I'm giving her saline about 3X per day and my gut tells me there is more to this than meets the eye. My husband and his family all have severe sinus issues so I just hope she's not the same! Thanks again for the support!
Hi Kim,
Ditto to everyone who said this sounds like a milk allergy. I really recommend taking this seriously. Before my son's allergy was diagnosed, he too had chronic nasal and ear congestion -- plus a significant speech delay because the ear congestion was interfering with his hearing. I can give you specifics on dairy-free diets for different ages if you're interested. Just let me know.
Mira
Hello Kim,
sorry to hear your baby is having such a hard time with congestion. allergy testing should be at the top of the list. I'd also try a dairy free diet. Milk can be the culprit. another thing is latex allergy. it took me over 15 months to figure out that my daughter was allergic to latex. started w/ stuffy nose that became colds 3 days after having a check-up that eventually became asthma. good luck figuring out what is the issue. keep at it until you figure it out. the doctor might be reluctant to pin it on milk .... but you won't know until you try. oh, by the way, not all allergies show on tests or it could be a sensitivity that has the same results of an allergy. good luck! ~C.~
From a few months old, my son would scratch and pull at his ears to the point where he was bleeding almost daily! He was also very snotty/big boogers/runny nose, etc. Just figured it was cold season/winter. We took him to the doctor when he was 8 months old and turns out he had a double ear infection. I was told that some colds/runny noses can lead to ear infections or fluid in the ears. We're on month four of antibiotics (different ones) and there is no relief. He's getting tubes next week. I was told that some kids just have residual fluid in their ears and if antiobotics cannot clean it up, then those kids may have to have tubes even if they do not have an infection because that is the only way the fluid will drain out. My daughter just had tubes in March so now I know what to expect and I'm excited for him to get them so he can be painfree!!
It's possible she has allergies... which will lead to continual congestion... and ear infections. My son was Dx w/ allergies early on.... and he was put on zyrtec and then singular. I would have him evaluated by a pediatric allergist. They don't always test positive at this age, but may respond to the medicine. Also, you can consult w/ an ent about tubes for her ears - a GODSEND! Good luck, I know how hard it is to see them so uncomfortable!
She may be allergic to milk. Milk can cause ear infections and swollen tonsils. Especially if she has smaller eustashian tubes. I was told by a pediatrician that children with large tonsils get frequent ear aches & in this case they normally have to be removed around 4 years of age. I hope you get to the bottom of this problem very soon, if your doctor can't help you then maybe a second opinion is best.
Try this (if you're not already): prop up the head of her crib on phonebooks to help with the drainage at night. Also, you can run a cool mist humidifier in her room at night.
If you think she is NO better, call your pediatrician. Sometimes amoxicillan isn't strong enough and then they give you ANOTHER antibiotic to take for another 10 days. Ugh. Hope she's better soon!
I would ask if she could be tested for allergies. They can test it using a blood sample.
Hi. I suggest going to an allergist. If you cannot get an apt. for a few days, I would avoid all milk and dairy. Switch to soy in the meantime. See if it gets better. When people are allergic to milk it causes congestion.
Also, make an ENT apt. that could take 2 weeks. My friends son sounds like your daughter. 365 days a year always congested. he was not allergic to milk. She still switched him to soy anyway. He needed eartubes and Adnoids removed. His Adnoids were so big it was blacking all drainage and caused his head to constantly be congested. He's a million times better now.
Hi,
My daughter had similar issues and finally she had to have tubes and adnoids/tonsils removed. It was the best thing we did but I was very aprehensive at first. I wish I had taken her to and ear/nose/throat specialist early on. It would have relieved her of alot of stress / pain etc. That is what you should do is go to a speacialist. Don't wait too long before doing that as with my daughter at age 3 she had such clogged ears from dried fluid that she could barely hear. Now she is fine though but you should deal with it early. Your baby may have allergies too.
listen kim,i want to tell you about something that really honestly worked for my son that kept having ear infectiuons and constant fluid in his ears my mother was speaking to someone at a pharmacy one day about my son she said i got the answer for you buy a bottle of sweet oil and put some in the cap and drop in the ear put in a cotton ball and let sit for 30 min to hour and it will draw the fluid,it worked for us I sware to you. and my son had that fluid in his ears forever and ear infection after ear infection,the doctor might not like it because it is not traditional but this is what people use to use back in the day. i'm not saying do not still use antibiotics the infection needs to be taken care of i mean as an aide to the fluid is all,it is much easier when they get that fluid in there to get an infection because of being moist and bacteria thrive in that. you may have to do it a few times but it worked for us,I am a believer. better than thinking tubes?
Dear Kim,
I am so sorry for what your little peanut is going through, as well as you.
My LO also seems to have a continuous cold. He is now 21 months. The dr. said the same things as you.
Some thoughts:
1. Plenty of sunshine (not at peak summer hours :) to dry up the cold.
2. Bowl of water under the bed for the moisture.
3. If you use air conditioning, keep it at lowest setting and away from her bed.
4. Plenty of fluids.
at some point, maybe you want to consider seeing an Ear Nose Throat specialist before the winter season?????
GL. HTH. Jilly
get her to an ent sounds like she needs tubes and find another doc
