Expert: Dr. Louis N. Gotthelf - 5/21/2008

Question
Hello. I hope you can help us. I have a four year old cat prone to ear infections. She scratches until she bleeds and cries. I took her to a local doctor when the right ear swelled up like a balloon. It was completely shut. They did a procedure that deformed her ear. She still scratched at the ear and cried. I took her to another doctor and they gave us trasadone(?) drops to put in her ear daily. Now the ear is completely swelled shut and she acts like it is very painful. The last doctor tells us to take her out of town to a specialist to have her ears removed. Is there any other option for us?

Answer
IF the ear canals have scarred in from the surgeries and the chronic infections, the ear canals may need to be removed.  In cats, the middle ear is many times infected and that's why they get the aural hematoma.  Most vets cannot recognize middle ear disease.  Before going to surgery, ask your vet for a referral to someone that has a video otoscope in your area to see if there is a middle ear problem.  Sometimes high dose steroids and an oral drug called Azithromycin can help open up the canals and treat the infection.  Tresaderm can be very toxic in a cat's ear without an eardrum.