My five-year-old son has been diagnosed with glue ear. Does this mean he will need surgery?
Glue ear occurs when the middle ear becomes filled with a sticky glue-like fluid. It is estimated that one in five children around the age of two will be affected by glue ear at any one time, and around eight in every 10 children will have had glue ear at least once by the time they are 10 years old.
The main symptom of glue ear is some hearing loss in one or both ears. Most cases do not need to be treated as they improve on their own. Treatment is usually only recommended when the symptoms haven't resolved after a period of time (usually three months) and the hearing loss is thought to be affecting a child's speech and language development. In these cases, glue ear can usually be treated using minor surgery or the fitting of grommets (small tubes that help drain away the fluid).
Cases of glue ear that affect a child's speech and language development may require minor surgery