Back in November 2013, I talked about how Nakayla will undergo a day surgery in the second week of January 2014 to fix the Preauricular Sinus issue.
Well, we didn’t go for the surgery in the end. If we had, you’d know last Monday, cos that’s when I booked the surgery for.
When I first booked for the pre-surgery check-up and surgery date, I was confident about it. I was very sure that we will go through with it, and that it will solve the Preauricular Sinus issue.
Then, I started to be unsure. Not so much on the surgery procedure, but the caring after and the bill that’s to follow.
I couldn’t stop thinking about it. So at her 12 months old check-up, I told Nakayla’s PD about her infection and my concerns for the surgery. He checked on Nakayla’s ear and gave me some feedback and suggestions.
He said that the surgery wasn’t necessary, but I could also go ahead with it, if I felt that there is really a need to fix it. I was still unsure about it, to which he suggested, not word for word but along the lines of, “Maybe you can monitor her ear for another year and see how frequent the infections are? If it’s too frequent, then a surgery might be the best way out. If it’s not, then just leave it.”
Nakayla’s PD also gave me the rough price range for the procedure. And to be honest, I was really shocked. For something that I’ve been told was really simple, in and out within 30 minutes, I wasn’t expecting the price range to be higher than the surgery Blake had when he was a year old! That was a far more complicated surgery!
So what I did next was to check with the insurance. But seriously, why do I even bother? I’ve noticed that as long as the child is less than two years old, whenever we try to get an insurance payout, they’ll just reply with, “That’s classified as congenital”. And just by saying the word, “congenital”, they don’t have to pay for anything related to that issue. And because this issue is recorded before Nakayla’s two and above, even if I were to plan for the surgery to be 2-3 years later, it’s still not claimable. Sigh. Makes me wonder if I should’ve just brought her to a regular GP instead of KKH when she first got the infection.
But oh well, that’s all done and over with, and so last year (haha! trying to inject humor here!). No point harping on it anymore, right?
So in the end, we decided that since it wasn’t urgent, or even necessary, we’ll monitor her ear for a year like her PD suggested. I suppose we can take all the time we need. It also helped that Shanice, a reader of this blog, shared with me her own experience as her daughter has Preauricular Sinus as well. Thank you, Shanice!
So dear Preauricular Sinus, please do not get infected again. I’ll clean you with the nicest smelling baby wash my hands can take every single day. Just don’t get infected again, ok?
I Hope Nakayla never have to deal with that ever again!!! Putting her in my constant prayers!!
Thanks, Irene!
Hi, my 15mo daugther also has preauricular sinus at both ears, in March this year, the preauricular sinus on her left ear being infected, and it has been going on and off with the multiple infections for months now, decided to go for day surgery but we are yet prepare to take the risk & complexity of the surgery.
How is Nakayla doing now? Does she take a lot of actibiotic for the infection till now?! Really hope to hear from u soon.
Hi Margaret,
We didn’t go for the surgery. We decided to take a ‘wait and see’ approach. So far, there hasn’t been a recurrence of the infection. Phew!
From what I understand from the ENT specialist, the surgery is supposedly simple but the healing process might be a little tedious to care for. If you’re not sure, do seek a second opinion.
Wishing your daughter speedy recovery!
Hi, my 2 yr old toddler is currently having her infection for 3 days. I still unsure if i should bring her to the dr or wait for it to go away. Previously, u waited hw long brfore you brought her to the dr? And e insurance cant be claimed for this condition that you had mentioned rite? How is ur girl dealing with this? Still ok?
Hello! We brought our girl to the A&E immediately as hers swelled up and we had no idea what happened – Never heard or seen anything like it before. Prior to that, we didn’t really notice anything different. She just woke up with her ear swelling that morning, if I remember correctly. For her case, we were told that insurance cannot be claimed for the surgery required to fix the hole. She never went for the surgery. After we managed to get the swelling down, she recovered and it never happened again. We clean and check her ear everyday to prevent it from occurring again – so far so good.
If you’re looking for advice, my advice is to bring her to a doctor and seek their opinion on the next best course of action.
Hi thanks for ur reply. She finished her first course if augmentin. It did not resolved. Instead it got worsen. Hence we brought her back to the dr. Nw the dr gave a higher dose of augmentin which is 6mls, twice a day. N a steroid cream to apply. I m abit hesistate to let her take such a high dose of antiobiotic. Currently apparently the cream for her. 1 day had past, nt much improvement. I guess i have to really serve her the antibiotic. Could i ask, do u still rem ur gal’s dosage?
I can’t remember the dosage, but I remember having to go through 14 days (two courses) of antibiotics to get rid of it. We didn’t have to apply steroid cream though… Not that I remember. As always, my advice is to check with the doctor, especially if you’re uncomfortable with the second course of higher dosage of antibiotics. Ask your doctor if there’s another way to go about it.
Thank you so much for the reply. I did ask the dr. But the dr said we should go ahead n give her rather tha leave it alone.
Do as the doctor says. It’s all for your daughter’s quick recovery 🙂
How do you clean it? My daughter also have a pit on her ear and sometimes have pus coming out
Hi, we used to clean it with wet tissue or a damp cloth. If there’s pus coming out, please monitor it closely. Do consult a doctor/ENT specialist should you see redness or swelling.
Thanks. Pray! Looks like getting worst again. But hope for e best!
Wishing your daughter a speedy recovery!
Hi Mabel
I found your site after searching for help on preauricular infection. My girl is having an infection now and it’s the third day that she’s on antibiotics. Just want to ask if you have any tips on how to reduce the swelling? Thanks in advance
Hi Yinghui, for us, we just made sure to keep the ears clean and to give antibiotics on time. Eventually it’ll all clear out on its own and the swelling will also reduce.
Thanks Mabel for your reply. I am worried sick as the infection looks so red and swollen. May I know which ENT doctor did you see?
I understand how worried you must be feeling cos Nakayla’s one turned purple by the time we were in A&E. Truly a frightening experience for us. We went to KKH A&E and was assigned to an ENT specialist, but each follow up after was a different doctor.
Even with the antibiotics it seems to be getting redder and more swollen. Did Nakayla’s swelling get worse before getting better?
Hi, sorry for getting back to you so late. Nakayla’s one went from purple (which was in quite a bad state already) to red then gradually the swelling stopped. She went on 2 cycles of antibiotics – 14 days worth – as 1 cycle wasn’t enough. If you’re worried, please seek medical attention. It’s best to get a professional/specialist to check on it. I hope this helps!
We are considering to go kkh or private ent now. What was the surgery cost quoted by kkh if you can remember?
I can’t remember the quote for the surgery at KKH, sorry about that.
It’s ok . Thanks so much for your replies. Really appreciate it!
You’re most welcome. I hope your girl recovers soon!
Thx Mabel!
Most welcome!
Hi, How do you clean your daughter preauricular sinus pit. My son is currently having an infection and on antibiotic.
Hi! We cleaned it with water and minimal soap. Wishing your son a speedy recovery 😀
Hi ma’am, im currently having a preauricular sinus infection and taking some antibiotics, do the doctors suggested to drain the abscesses in your daughterss preauricular sinus infection or just antibiotics? Thank you ma’am.
Hello, my daughter took 2 courses of antibiotics to clear it up. They did suggest surgery to close the hole should there be a recurring infection. However, please seek your doctor’s opinion as each infection case is different and I’m not medically trained to advice further.
Now that your daughter is older, is this still something she still experiences?
Hi, sorry for the late reply! She actually went for an operation to remove the year pit last year. I have been meaning to do an update regarding it but haven’t had the time. I will update as soon as I can with her progress!
Hi Mabel, thanks for sharing this. What made you decide to go for the op in the end? Did your girl have another infection after the first? How much was the op?
Hi, sorry for the late reply! Been really busy…
Yes, she had another infection and we took the doctor’s advice to go for surgery. I’m in the midst of putting the post together, hopefully I’ll be able to finish it soon and share the final chapter on this journey.
My 3 yo daughter is having her first infection. Just finished 1st cycle of antibiotics but the abses is still there…. may i know.. when u decide to postpone the operation.. did Nakayla’s infection turn normal arld? Or thers still a lil bump on the ear? Thank you so much
Hi Caryn, when Nakayla’s first infection happened, the ear returned to normal after the infection cleared up with the help of antibiotics.
However, for the second infection, we had to drain the excess pus out, recommended by the doctor at KKH, as the antibiotics did not work – the area was still red/purplish and swollen.
If after the first round of antibiotics is finished and the area is still red and swollen, I suggest that you bring your daughter back to the doctor. I will recommend KKH, in case there’s a need to drain excess pus out.
I hope she gets well soon!