ENT Specialist

We took Jereth to Dr. Jill Beck, the ear, nose, and throat specialist Dr. Walker referred us to. She is also the one who did a quick scope of his larynx at St. Luke's before we went to Primary Children's. She will be doing the follow-up from the work done on his throat in Utah.

She still has not received the report from Dr. Munz, the ENT in Utah who did the supraglottoplasty and bronchioscope. When I told her who had done the procedures she was quite surprised that she didn't get his report. I suggested she contact his office directly with the request since she knows Dr. Munz and figures the delay is not on his part but is more likely because someone at Primary Children's dropped the ball.

We discussed Jereth's breathing problems, what is being done to help him now, and what the doctors in Utah said about what is needed before he can have his heart surgery. We also talked about the complicated mix of problems he has that need to be addressed and how the many issues interrelate. Then Dr. Beck did a general ENT exam.

When Dr. Beck tried to look in Jereth's ears she was not able to see his eardrums even with her microscope. She said it looked like he has fluid in his ears (which was confirmed with a test after the appointment) and the fluid is not likely to drain on its own. So Jereth will probably have tubes put in his ears when the other procedures are done next Monday morning.

On a bright note, Jereth's hearing tested as normal, even with the fluid on his ears. Since hearing problems can increase the learning difficulties for children with Downs, it will be good to have the tubes in his ears to avoid ear infections as he grows. Ear infections are a major cause of hearing problems for children with Downs and most end up needing ear tubes at some point.

Tomorrow we will go see the gastroenterologist (doctor that works with the stomach, esophagus, and such) who will check to see if the reflux is being treated sufficiently with the Prevacid and Zantac. Dr. Beck (and other doctors) said that reflux can make the breathing problems worse by irritating the windpipe so it's important to see just how much effect his spitting up is having on his windpipe.