What do parents say?

Inflating nasal balloon

Parents of children who took part in a research study at University of Southampton were interviewed about the nasal balloon. Here are some of their experiences:

What did parents say about the nasal balloon?

Most parents and children liked the idea of trying a nasal balloon to treat glue ear and children found it fun to do:

One mother of a 5 year old boy said "it looked quite a simple thing to use and – he just got on with it. He loved it, you know, it was a great thing, a five-year-old boy trying to blow up a balloon with his nose"
Another parent agreed: " well the girls thought that was great fun, anything to do with balloons!"

What helped them remember to use the nasal balloon?

Parents said that making the nasal balloon treatment part of their daily routine was helpful. The children liked using a sticker reward chart as a reminder (you can download a sticker reward chart here)

Parent of 6 year old boy commented: "in the morning whatever we were doing, and then at bedtime, so it was just like cleaning your teeth, just brought it in as an extra thing to do as part of the routine”
Parent of 4 year old boy commented: “he was – really happy to be down here: let me mark off, let me put the sticker on – and so we never had no problems with it. In fact he was reminding me – mum, I haven't done it, I haven't done my balloon”

Did families have any problems using the nasal balloon?

Some parents reported that their children had problems with the first inflation. Pre-stretching really helps with releasing some of the tension and to keep trying.

Parents of a 6 year old boy said: "He did struggle to start with, but it wasn't long before he could get it to an orange"
Another parent agreed "my son was quite shy to do it at first. But when we got home of course it's like a new toy so he was all over it"

Other parents reported problems continuing treatment over a longer period. Parents tried to make the treatment fun for the children:

One parent commented: "We made a joke out of it; it was a bit of a game really - to see who could blow the biggest balloon"
Mother of a 4 year old girl said: " It got tricker as time went on because she got fed up with it and she was saying she didn't want to do it anymore. But i kept encouraging her and gave her sticker rewards and she managed to finish the treatment"