Your child has had an ear operation, either a tympanoplasty (tim-PAN-oh-plas-tee) or a mastoidectomy (mass-toyd-EK-tuh-me). There are a few things you should do for your child at home.

After Surgery

The operated ear is usually packed with Gelfoam® (a material that absorbs blood). It will feel clogged and your child may hear crackling sounds. The most important thing to remember is to keep the ear dry.

The temple and area around the eye socket (orbit) on the affected side may also become a little swollen.

The first day after surgery your child may have some vertigo (dizziness), nausea or vomiting. If your child is experiencing these symptoms, a liquid or bland diet (like crackers, broth, or Jell-o®) is recommended. A regular diet may be started the when these symptoms resolve.

What to Expect

These are some symptoms that may follow any ear operation:

  • A different taste and dryness in the mouth - Your child may notice this for a few weeks after surgery. The taste change is usually described as a metal taste on one side of the tongue. In some patients, the symptoms can be permanent due to an affected nerve in the middle ear.
  • Tinnitus - Your child may hear a ringing or buzzing sound before surgery and usually will hear it for a while after surgery. This is called tinnitus. It may last for one to two months and then stop as the hearing gets better, or it may last longer.
  • Ear numbness - For a while after surgery your child may lose some feeling in the skin in and around the ear. This numbness may involve the whole outer ear or only the top half. Loss of feeling may last for as long as six months or it can be permanent.
  • Jaw symptoms - The jaw joint is at the front of the ear canal. Some soreness or stiffness in the jaw often happens after ear surgery. It usually goes away within 1 to 2 months.
  • Drainage behind the ear - The surgeon may need to insert a drain tube behind the ear. We usually do not know this before surgery begins. If a drain tube is used, it will be taken out after the operation.
  • Ear pressure and dizziness - Ear “popping,” “cracking” noises or mild dizziness may happen because of the packing in the middle ear. It is normal for your child to feel dizzy or lightheaded for up to one week after surgery.

Home Care

Activity

  • Your child may play quietly. They should avoid active or rough play and contact sports, such as football and soccer, until they are cleared by the surgeon a few weeks after surgery (Picture 1).
  • No swimming until cleared by the surgeon.
  • Ask your child’s doctor when your child may go back to school. This is usually after 1 to 3 days.
  • No heavy lifting or bending until your child sees the doctor. This will prevent pressure from building up in their head.
  • Avoid playing certain musical instruments, such as wind instruments or a trumpet, until cleared by the surgeon.

When to Call the Doctor

If any of these things happens, call your child’s doctor at (614) 722-6547 or (614) 722-2000 and ask for the ENT clinic. After regular office hours, ask for the ENT resident to be paged if:

  • Your child complains of a lot of pain even after taking pain medicine.
  • You see a large amount of bleeding, puss or foul-smelling drainage coming from your child’s ear.
  • Your child has a temperature over 101 degrees.
  • There is redness in the ear area.
  • Your child is very dizzy.
  • There is a difference in the way your child’s face looks or moves on the side of the surgery.

Safety Tips and Other Advice

  • Give the exact amount of medicine your doctor ordered.
  • Do not let your child do anything that needs balance when taking painkillers.
  • If the medicine is a liquid, use a pediatric measuring device (available at the pharmacy) to measure the exact dose. Do not measure liquid medicines in kitchen spoons.
  • Stay with your child until they have swallowed the dose of medicine.
  • Do not give more than 5 doses of medicine in a 24-hour period unless ordered by your child’s doctor.
  • Store all medicine out of the reach of children.
  • If your child or someone else takes too much of this medicine, first call the Central Ohio Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222 (TDD (614) 228-2272). They will tell you what to do.

Follow-up Appointment

Call the ENT clinic at (614) 722-3866 to schedule the follow-up visit if it has not already been scheduled.

If you have questions or if your child is having problems, call the ENT Nurse Triage Line (614) 722-6547, or in an emergency call the Hospital operator at (614) 722-2000 and ask for the ENT surgeon on call.

Ear Surgery: Care after Tympanoplasty and/or Mastoidectomy (PDF), Spanish (PDF), Somali (PDF)

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