Eyes

    Puralube Eye Ointment: We have been using this every 2 hours since Ethan was born.  We've tried to back down on it, but his eyes get red & itchy & his ectropian gets worse if we do.  We use at least one tube per day... sometimes a little more... occasionally a little less.  It is the cheapest ointment available.  A big downside: the stains on clothing.

We are currently trialing OTC Refresh Liquigel drops during the day.  So far, so good.  They don't get his glasses as dirty.

Ears

Cleaning

The best thing we've found is:

    *see a pediatric ENT to remove scales

    *buy an otoscope (we spent $60 and got a decent one) to keep an eye on scale build-up

    *do NOT use q-tips!  :)  That ramrods the scales in & makes things worse!

Ethan recently had his first sedated ear cleaning.  It went quite well.  It was amazing how quickly his speech improved.

Hearing

Ethan's initial hearing screen was normal.  We have just had a hearing screen that showed possible mild/moderate hearing loss.  We're going to continue with additional screenings, but I suggest having hearing tested again if you feel that there may be issues.  Ethan has had speech problems, so we felt like a hearing screen would be prudent (it is suggested for all children with speech problems).

Nails

    Ethan's nails grow very quickly just like his skin.  I don't have great advice for this oh-so-fun task.  If anyone does, please share;)

--> Something to look forward to... when Ethan was an infant, I had to cut nails every day (much more than my unaffected daughter... hers were done about 1x a week)... now it's much better!:)  They also seem to not be as strong & break easily.