Discharge Instructions for Tympanoplasty

Your child had a procedure called tympanoplasty, which can repair a damaged eardrum, stop infection, and improve hearing. Here's what you need to know about home care following this procedure.

What to Expect

• Expect a small amount of drainage from the ear.

• Don't be alarmed if the skin of your child’s outer ear is numb. This is a result of the surgery. The feeling should return within a few months.

Ear Care

• Keep your child’s head slightly elevated for the first 24 hours after going home.

• Help your child to avoid anything that makes the ears pop.

• Discourage your child from blowing his or her nose. Don’t allow your child to hold the nose closed.

• Show your child how to sneeze with the mouth open.

• Allow your child to shower as necessary, starting 3 days after surgery. A tub bath is allowed as long as your child doesn’t put his or her head in the water.

• Keep the ear dry. You can place a cotton ball dabbed with a small amount of petroleum jelly in the outer ear to keep water out during a bath or shower.

• Give your child medication exactly as directed.

Activity

• Make sure your child avoids activities that involve heavy lifting and straining.

• Get your doctor's permission before allowing your child to fly in a plane or before swimming.

Follow-Up

• Make follow-up appointments as directed by our staff. Your child’s ear has special packing material in it. Parts of this material may need to be removed at specific times.

• Ask your doctor when your child may return to school.