My Child’s Ear Hurts or Itches After Swimming — Could It Be Swimmer’s Ear? Swimming lessons are finished, and your child seemed completely well when they left the pool. Later that evening—or perhaps the following day—they start rubbing one ear. They may say: “It feels itchy inside.” “My ear hurts when I touch it.” “It feels blocked.” Sometimes there is even a small amount of watery or unpleasant-smelling discharge. Parents naturally wonder whether water is simply trapped in the ear or whether their child has developed an ear infection. One possibility is otitis externa , commonly called swimmer’s ear . The important point is that swimmer’s ear is not the same type of ear infection as the middle-ear infections commonly seen after childhood colds . Understanding the difference helps parents know what to do—and what not to put inside the ear. What exactly is swimmer’s ear? Swimmer’s ear is inflammation or infection of the skin lining the ear canal . The ear canal is the short passag...
Why Does My Child Always Breathe Through Their Mouth? Adenoids, Allergies and Blocked Noses Explained You are watching television with your child and notice their mouth is slightly open. Then you realise something. They seem to do it all the time . Perhaps they sleep with their mouth open. They may snore, sound permanently blocked or breathe noisily when eating. Their pillow may occasionally be wet with saliva. Parents often ask: “Why doesn't my child just breathe through their nose?” Occasional mouth breathing is very common when children have a cold. Persistent mouth breathing is different. It usually means either that breathing through the nose is difficult, or that a pattern of mouth breathing has become established. A common ENT explanation in younger children is enlarged adenoids , but allergies, recurrent colds, and other causes of nasal obstruction also need to be considered. Current NHS guidance specifically recognises that enlarged adenoids can m...