Preauricular skin pit

[Tizzy]

Anyone have experience with these?
DS2 has a small dimple/pit on the outside of his ear on each side. My uncle has them and my MIL has one as well.

[nerdymom]

Yes, my DS has this. Tiny little holes on his ear? Apparently they run in MiL's family, and my dad also had them. Dad's closed up. MiL's did not. How old is your DS?

[mags]

YES! They run on my DH's side of the family. Fil has one, my DH has several, and my youngest son has them. The ENT was very gung ho about wanting to remove it. However, my DH and FIL have never had issues with theirs. I call it his, "puss hole." Every once in a while, he says it feels itchy, and then he kind of pushes around it and, "puss" comes out and then everything is fine again. It doesn't seem to bother my son, nothing has come out of his, I don't want to mess with it and accidentally get it infected. I would just leave it alone and not draw any attn to it to your DS, so he doesn't pick at it unneccesarily.

[nerdymom]

The VA department of health is pushing me to have his hearing checked at 6 months. They called me yesterday, and are sending me information. Because DS was born in the hospital (HB transfer ) He had the state-mandated hearing test, but because of his ear pits, they didn't give him a 100% pass. He passed the initial test. but they want to do follow up testing regularly, starting at 6months.

What should I do?

[mags]

Originally Posted by nerdymom

The VA department of health is pushing me to have his hearing checked at 6 months. They called me yesterday, and are sending me information. Because DS was born in the hospital (HB transfer ) He had the state-mandated hearing test, but because of his ear pits, they didn't give him a 100% pass. He passed the initial test. but they want to do follow up testing regularly, starting at 6months.

What should I do?

I'm confused. Is there an association with the ear pits and hearing difficulties??? If not, then why are they not giving him a 100% pass b/c of the ear pits? My son was born at the hospital and passed the hearing test just fine, even WITH the ear pits. I would do one follow up test and if everything checks out, I would refuse to do more unless you feel that your child has a hearing problem...

[nerdymom]

This is the only thing I could find on the dept. of health website.

Stigmata or other findings associated with a syndrome known to include a sensorineural and/or conductive hearing loss, including preauricular tag or pit/sinus

So apparently there is a correlation between these pits and hearing loss? I don't know, they weren't very helpful at the hospital, and the dept of health is sending me some information. I guess I will just have to wait until it arrives. DH agrees with you, have the follow-up screening then let it be.

[Ceinwen]

My grandmother, mother, myself and both my girls have them (teeny tiny) and no one here has any hearing loss or other issues.

[nerdymom]

Same with my dad and MiL. Well, MiL doesn't hear what she doesn't want to, but her ears are just fine!

[MommaCheese09]

My son is 3 and he is having surgery to remove his preauricular pit on Tuesday 01/15/2013.  Pediatric ENT told me that about 2% of the world's population have ear pits and only 10% of that original 2% have infections/problems with it.  My son's got infected this past summer and again in the fall.  After the second infection in 4 months my regular doc sent me to this ENT at Children's Hospital.  I hope no one else is as "lucky" as we are to be that 10% of the 2% that have issues. His hearing is fine, his kidneys are fine, he has hardly ever been sick and this is the only thing that ales him so far in life.  He has pits on both ears but the left one is problematic.  The right one is barely even there and has minimal to no discharge.  The left was pushing white "dead skin cells" out in the size of a pea or bigger once a week or even more often than that before it was infected. No one in my family to my knowledge has these pits on their ears but it's said to be genetically passed on.

[CA Country Girl]

My husband and older DD have these.  My husband has a similar one on the corner an eye.  We call them "gills".  They have never had any problems (no ear infections or anything else). When DD1 had the hearing test, they told me that they had formally thought this might be associated with hearing loss, but that this has since been found to be mostly untrue.  DD1 also has geographic tongue, which MIL has.  She gets these island/continent looking spots on her tongue occasionally.  MIL says she has never been able to link the changes to anything.  Genetics are so weird , but fun.  Tizzy, I would not worry unless there is some other issue. Momma Cheese- I hope your sons surgery goes well.