Flying and ear infection ?

[sandy0904]

We are heading to Disney at the end of the month. This will be DS 4th trip. The last 2 times he got an ear infection 2 days into the trip. He has only had one other ear infection otherwise. He didn't have a cold or congestion on either of the flights but I am convinced the ear infections are due to flying. I hate to spend 4+ hours going to a clinic every trip. The first time he got the ear infection at Disney he got a really high fever and was in pain. This last time it didn't seem to bother him too much. I am going to make sure that he uses his "ear planes" ear plugs which are supposed to regulate the pressure in his ears since it bothers him when we land. Has anyone ever experienced this and have any advice.

 

[I*heart*MickeyMouse]

You don't say how old your ds is...

Flying dries out nasal passages and thickens mucus, which then impedes his ears' ability to depressurize (my pedi says those ear plugs are a hoax - I tried them twice and they didn't help my ds... YMMV)

Before the flight spray some saline nasal spray in his nose and have him blow it, if he can. If not, just spray it up there and let it keep his nose moist.

Make sure he's hydrated. Helps keep the mucus thinned out.

I always put some tea tree oil on a tissue and rub some inside our nasal passages before we fly. It keeps our nasal passages moist and provides a bit of a barrier to cold germs.

Depending on his age have him chew gum, suck on a lollipop, nurse/give a bottle, use a binkie or drink from a sippie cup or sport water bottle (because it's a sucking, not just a drinking) to help regulate his inner ear pressure.

If either of my kids show ANY signs of a cold up to a week prior to our flight I treat it AGGRESSIVELY because any bit of boogies/head congestion will most definitely cause ear pain when flying, and could likely cause an ear infection. Steam, steam, steam. Saline spray and my oldest (8 years old) uses the neti pot. Tons of fluid and Vitamin C overload.

Good luck

 

[jakoky]

I am not sure how old your son is, but i will tell you a trick i have used...i have 3 kids, all teenagers, and even driving over high elevations can set my kids ears off... 2-3 days before we leave, no matter whether they show signs of a cold or not, they take a decongestant...also they day we fly and the day after we arrive...we start the process before the flight home....we have never had a problem, other than my sons ears being plugged for 24 hours once and him complaining cause he couldnt hear...He actually has slight and permanent hearing loss in one ear from constant uninfected fluid behind his ears when he was 3 and 4....good luck

 

[sandy0904]

I*heart*MickeyMouse and Jakoky...thanks for all the info. DS is almost 3 years old now. We try to have him drink something out of a straw or sippy cup during takeoff/landing but he doesn't always want to. We'll try the lollipops this time.

 

[alyssa810]

My DS, who's 3 now, had chronic ear infections and finally had tubes put in when he was almost 18 month old. They've since fallen out but in the meantime he had flown while on antibiotics right before he had his tubes put in and his ears were still infected, and several times with his tubes in (and no infections). His tubes have since come out, and he's only flown once, but he had no problems with his ears since he had his tubes in. He also didn't have any issues with his ears and flying in general, and he's flown several times since he was a baby.

For a while I used airborne when I flew because I felt like I got sick every time we flew anywhere; but I think it's just all the recirculated air on the plane that keeps the germs in and helps everyone get sick. I stopped using airborne when I was pregnant, and I haven't really noticed a difference in whether or not I get sick. With my DS, I try to make sure he's washing his hands when he should be, and not putting his mouth on everything -not that it's really a problem- but he seems to do much better when we travel.

 

[Peanut Giggleface]

I've always had problems with my ears and slight changes in altitude. Even going over mountain passes are very painful for me. It was worse as a child. I've tried all sorts of things: yawning, swallowing hard, ear drops. These remedies usually work for small changes in elevation. For flying nothing works as good as Sudafed or Pseudophed (sp?). Two of them taken just before take off keep my ears happy until after touch down. Since your little one can't take pills, I'd ask your pharmacist what options there are available for him. HTH

 

[Plumeria9]

Get Earplanes for kids! I always have my kids wear them when we fly. I have seen Earplanes for adults at Walgreens, the kid version is a bit harder to find, but totally worth it. I've bought them on drugstore.com and medcostore.com. Usually around $5-6 a pair, and you can use them for the round trip flights. I put the box into a ziploc baggie and save them for the ride hope w/o them getting germy and stuff.