Every week, 10,000 children in the U.S. get ear tubes for recurring ear infections.

Ian Miller was about a year old when he starting having ear problems. After six or seven rounds of antibiotics, he received ear tubes.

"That went really well. The ear infections stopped. He was much more comfortable, no more screaming and no more antibiotics.  So the ear tubes made a difference,” said his mom, Jessica Miller.

Persistent fluid is a good reason for putting in the tubes.

Health experts used to believe ear tubes would help prevent delays in child development for children with persistent infections. But new research, in the New England Journal of Medicine, doesn’t support that belief.

Dr. Richard Rosenfeld, Director of Pediatric Otolaryngology at Long Island College Hospital, says there are two main reasons for putting in ear tubes.

“The first are generally very young infants who are getting so many ear infections that they’re in the frequent flier club - they are living on antibiotics. Their parents have the numbers of 3 all night pharmacies memorized and these children are miserable. Putting in ear tubes will stop the frequent ear infections in their tracks. The second group is children who are not developing normally with their speech, language, their learning even their school performance.”

That’s what happened when Ian’s tubes fell out.

Mrs. Miller said she noticed a change in her son’s behavior.

“He was playing by himself. He wasn’t talking to the other children. He was more withdrawn.  His hearing had actually gotten worst. His class experience had actually gotten worse and so we decided to go with a second set of tubes,” she explained.

In such a case, ear tubes make sense, the study shows.

Otherwise, parents can put off tubes for six to nine months unless other problems crop up.

“I think it closes the door on operating on kids who have no problems other than ear fluid for the alleged purpose of preventing a developmental delay,” states Dr. Rosenfeld.

One ENT specialist, Dr. Jordan Josephson of Lenox Hill Hospital, adds that hearing loss from middle ear fluid may cause psychological problems later because other children may not be responding to your child normally.

If you have concerns, consult with a board certified otolaryngologist who is familiar with otitis media and sinus and nasal problems.