CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- Three out of four children fall victim to an ear infection by the time they're three years old, many of them during winter when viruses abound. Treating the common problem can be a tedious procedure, but a new device makes healing ears simple.
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For years, Nancy Mazurianic has watched her son Tristen suffer from painful ear infections.
"It was awful," Nancy told Ivanhoe. "You hate to see your kid in pain like that."
For some patients, doctors insert tiny tubes inside the ears to ease pressure and fluid buildup and relieve pain. Multiple medical instruments are normally used for the procedure, putting delicate ears at risk for injury.
"The skin is so thin in the ear canal that if you just touch it with an instrument, it will start to bleed," Bradley Kesser, M.D., an otolaryngologist at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Va., told Ivanhoe.
Now, otolaryngologists -- or ear, nose and throat specialists -- have a new tiny device that makes the procedure safer, easier and faster so there's less risk of injury.
"With a single instrument, we're able to insert the tube and suction out any residual fluid that might be in the middle ear space," Dr. Kesser said.
Under general anesthesia, doctors make a small incision in the eardrum. Then the new device, a hollow rod holding a tiny tube, is inserted into this small opening with one motion. The tube lets air in and drains any fluid out. Eventually, the tube falls out.
"We've devised an instrument to increase the reliability of ear tube insertion, increase its safety and potentially increase its speed," Dr. Kesser said.
Tristen's procedure was a success, and his mom is thrilled to see him pain-free.
"It's been just amazing," Nancy said. "He's been a happy little camper [and] never complains about the ears at all anymore."
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