Preauricular Sinus Preauricular pits or sinuses are present in front of the ear. Their track course can go into the cartilage or end in the skin tissue. Why does a preauricular sinus or pit occur? A preauricular sinus or preauricular pit occurs as a result of faulty fusion in the development of the ear while the child is in the womb so it is a congenital condition present from birth. What does a preauricular sinus signify? No a preauricular sinus or pit does not close by itself. What complications can happen in a child or adult with a preauricular sinus? A preauricular sinus is lined by epithelium and can get blocked and infected at any time. Many persons may not have infection. But if infected it can lead to abscess formation and cellulitis. A pit can also accumulate material and become a cyst which is a swelling with a propensity to get infected. Hence Doctors advise to remove a preauricular sinus. What are the signs of an infected Preauricular sinus or pit? Preauricular Sinus Excision Under Local Anesthesia In adults the surgical excision of a preauricular sinus can be performed under local anesthesia. The duration of the procedure varies from 15 mins to 1 hour depending on the tract length and complexity. On an average it will take about 30 minutes. In young children it is done under general anesthesia. Will rest be required after the procedure to remove the preauricular sinus? No Generally ,no hospital stay is required and the person can resume normal activities. Care of the operated area involves keeping it dry and Dr Sonia or Dr Prateek Nayak will give you detailed instruction on the care of the area. The doctor said that there is infected sinus and must treatment with antibiotic before get surgery. How do we know that the infection is curing and ready for surgery? Thx junea doc, i have pits in both ears. Sonia, My 21 months old daughter has this tinny whole pit on the upper side of her right ear. Since couple of days, the pit is becoming red and swollen tho no pus is coming out. According to your answers above, is it safe for such surgery in such age. Is it really necessary or can we wait until she turns 10 years for example?! Thank you mamabear My eight month old son has two preauricular pits, one on each ear. I've been told that this is odd. Usually people only have one pit I guess. He also has a fistula of the tear duct but it's right next to his eye, which I was also told was odd, he actually has to have surgery to have the fistula fixed. But my baby has a double ear infection and both pits have been draining so now his pediatrician has sent him to yet another specialist, this time an ENT. I'm so stressed about all this, the baby is traumatized from doctors poking at his eye and ears and the idea of three surgeries before he's a year and a half old is maddening. Do you have any advice or am I doing everything right? A few days ago i woke up to the right side pit swollen and painful. It hurts to even lay on that side. This is the first time i have ever had any problems with these. Im not sure if it will go away on its own or if i should see a dr? I first had a huge infection when I was 12 and the doctor at that time numb my cyst and called it a tumor cyst. The He perform to pop it, which he succeeded and now I am 31 and after 31 years; it has came back because I accidentally pressed a device on the area. Mine is now infected and swollen since this afternoon. I am on google trying to find information on this and I am very amused to find a lot f information. I prefer no surgeries. I have looked up and ENT doctor for appointment tomorrow. Is there any home remedies for controlling the redness? So i can take precaution next time. Help me im 13 and I have an infection it's really painful to touch and it brused and swollen lots and today I went to the hospital with my dad and they seemed not to know what it is and just gave us anti biotics to clear the infection but I don't think it will help will it? Also my parents really want me to squeeze it but its really painful too they don't understand and when my mum squeezed it I cryed it was so painful should I squeeze it and just try to deal with the pain? Anonymous I'm presently suffering from preauricular abcess towards the exterior part of my ear. Of late, the frequency of such infections has risen. This is happening to me with a gap of every 5-6 months. This has happened thrice now and on all those occassions I had to undergo the incision and drainage procedure and it was very painful. Does one have to undergo this procedure for such infections or can the infection burst on its own. Is it possible for the infctions to burst and can one skip the incision and drainage procedure. Regards, Anushka hello doctor, i have a daughter of 15 months, with preauricular sinus on her right ear,it got infected 2 months back , after showing it to doctor, he suggested some antibiotics,but it did not subside and formed into abscess, which we had removed on his advice, but the wound did not heal from inside , so it's forming puss again ans again. End out insurance company rejected the claim with reason this disease is congenital. My question is is it pre auricular is 100% congenital? Or there have 1% chances to argue with it? The poor family need the insurance claim payout to reduce their burden. It leaks yellow puss EVERY SINGLE DAY for as far back as I can remember. I didn't know exactly what it was until now. My daughter had a cyst, but had surgery to remove it when she was a baby. I now have a friend who has a 9 yr old daughter who also has one. Her cyst is infected and currently is on day 7 of a second round of antibiotics. Today the site was so swollen and grew GREATLY within 3 hours. Her parents manually removed the pus, but they are concerned that they medicine is not working to rid her of the infection. What should they do? Dear mam This is Rajesh from Chennai ,My daughter is affected by pre auricular sinus its get infected two times , I checked with ENT surgeon they adviced me surgical removal is the treatment My daughter age is 1year 6 months. Doctor given the antibiotics to cure the infected sinus, now its look like normal skin. During night sleep she will turn a lot becuase of this stiches will affect Regards Rajesh Hello Doc. I have a preauricular infection that seems to be getting worse. I am on antibiotics for two days npw but the pain keeps getting worse. The swelling area looks Iike its getting purple and I just noticed a bump under my skin behind my ear on that same side just where the ear ends. What should I do I am concerned because I have a 7 month old who I breast feed is this dangerous for him? Thank you for your time My son has healed well from his left preauricular sinus tract excision. However, this happened months ago and and doesn't really complain for pain nor does it swell anymore. My problem is, his eating pattern has changed since the surgery. He used to be a hearty eater and now we have to force him to eat every day. Is there any connection to the surgery? Or is this a phase? Thank you in advance. I have a preauricular infection, I think... I already notice this when I was younger, smaller than today and sometimes its hurt when I'm not feeling well or sick. I am on antibiotics since yesterday but still the same and I'm having an ear ache now. What should I do? Thank you for your time Hi! Mam, I'm a 45 yrs old male and having preauricular pits on both ears. For the past one year or so the left year seems infected and pus oozes out and the front of the year has swelled a bit. So today i consulted a local ENT specialist who has advised me antibioytcs and then suggested surgery for both the ears. I want a second opinion about the surgery whether i should go forward on both the ears or only the one which is infected. My daughter is 17 years old. She has Branchio-Oto-Renal Syndrome. She has ear pits as discussed above on both ears. One of them discharges fluid regularly. About a month ago, that ear pit became infected sore, red, swollen, discharging different fluid. She has had 2 different rounds of antibiotics from the pediatrician. She went to an ENT today and was given a different antibiotic, because it is still infected. The ENT said that she should have surgery to remove the ear pits after the infection is gone. Thanks for your help. Im 34 weeks pregnant and Im going through a very painful odeal regarding this ear pit. It has been 3 days now and i believe is infected. Planning to go hospital tomoro as I am worried ut might affect my child. Is surgery possible for my current condition with local anaesthetic? Dear Mr David surgery is recommended and is not a very complicated surgery... I spent a significant amount of my childhood in Nigeria and yes I do know there are good doctors in Africa. Do take an opinion of a good ENT surgeon in your area. All the best Hello Dr. Sonia, My daughter is 2. Doctor has suggested for surgery. I am little bit scared because my daughter is too young for the surgery, I am worried if she will be scared seeing the operation theater. And also can a ENT surgeon operate this or pediatric surgeon is must? Your suggestions or words will bring some courage to me. Thank you for writing to me Mr Suresh. Yes your doctor has suggested the right step. In my experience if you counsel the child well they will take the experience in a very good way. Try to avoid voicing your worries and concerns in front of your daughter. Children perceive parental anxiety and the best way to allay her fears is for you to remain positive about it. Usually an ENT surgeon operates. All the best Bangalore, India Hi! I am an ENT Surgeon and mom to a crafty little girl. This blog is to share crafty projects, tutorials and crafty tips. I love to interact with crafters and would love to visit your blog too if you have one. Do leave a comment whenever you can and if you enjoyed visiting Do follow this blog via email or becoming a blogger friend!
