MRSA Ear Drainage or Ear Infection

It has been with increased frequency that I have been encountering children and even some adults with persistent ear drainage due to ear infections caused by MRSA . MRSA is basically a multi-drug resistant ear infection for which only a few antibiotics can kill the germ. (MRSA stands for M ethicillin R esistant S taphylococcus A ureus.) Typically this situation is encountered after ear tubes have been placed allowing for any pus from an ear infection to come out. Normally, antibiotic ear d…

9/08/2016 0

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Recurrent Infections of the Ear, Sinus May be Due to Immunodeficiency

Image Courtesy of marcolm at FreeDigitalPhotos.net Your immune system is what helps to fight off infections. But if the immune system is deficient in some way, a child or adult may experience recurrent infections. When it comes to ENT, such repeated infections may only involve the ear / sinus , or manifest itself as frequent URI. What are some key questions that may prompt an investigation for an immunodeficiency, especially if surgical management fails to resolve? • Need more than fo…

1/18/2015 0

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Should Toothbrushes be Thrown Out After Strep Throat?

As with so many things with medicine, this question which sounds so straightforward unfortunately has no straightforward answer. After all, there have only been a few studies that have specifically looked to answer this question. And the answer is decidedly ambiguous as the few studies done so far either support or disprove this practice. Two studies have found no difference in recurrent infections whether one keeps using an old toothbrush or replaces it with a new one after a strep th…

5/04/2013 0

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Pacifier Use Increases Risk of Ear Infections in Infants

There are many reasons why an infant may suffer from ear infections ... parental smoking, not breast-feeding, daycare, etc. However, what many parents may not realize is that pacifier use is also an additional well-known independent risk factor for causing ear infections as well. Numerous studies have documented this association and depending on what study you look at, the risk can be quite significant. Furthermore, the longer and more frequently the pacifier is used, the more ear infec…

10/11/2012 0

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Xylitol (Natural Compound) to Prevent Recurrent Sinus and Ear Infections?

Image by Lauri Andler from Wikipedia I only recently became aware of a natural sugar compound called "Xylitol" from a colleague Dr. Russell Faust. I certainly have never heard of it during medical school or surgical training. This naturally-occurring sugar substitute apparently has all sorts of anti-bacterial as well as anti-fungal properties and has been known to doctors and scientists but hardly marketed or promoted in any fashion. However, the importance of this compound …

6/29/2011 0

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Baby Shampoo Used to Treat Chronic Sinusitis

Yes... It's absolutely true! There's even research on this (limited). The mixture ratio is 1/2 teaspoon of Johnsons No-Tears Baby Shampoo  in 8 ounces of saltwater rinsed into the nose using a sinus rinse bottle can help with chronic sinusitis , especially when there's a lot of crusting present and to which all other therapies have failed to resolve. The shampoo appears to work via several mechanisms theoretically: 1) It is directly toxic to germs 2) The soap action help…

2/26/2011 6

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