Singulair and ear infection

My daughter was put on Singulair 2 weeks ago after discovering she is allergic to 4 kinds of trees that are pollinating in the fall and a certain mold that grows in corn and bean fields. Everything was going well until she got an ear infection and was put on the antibiotic amoxicillin which she has used off and on when she's had ear infections over the years. She then broke out in the hives. She has never had the hives before. I'm guessing it could be a combination of the two drugs. Why aren't doctors aware of this before prescribing this medication?

I am 40 years old and recently went to my medical facility as I have had a "viral" ear infection for almost a year now, and it is concerning me. I do not take medication typically. My new primary care provider recommended I try Singulair. So far I have taken three doses over three nights. The first night was horrifying, the dreams I had were so scary, and they were tied into reality which was even stranger as the drug also makes you wake up often, then when you fall back asleep your awake time ties into your dreams. I woke up in a numb state. Since then, I also have been extremely agitated, dizzy, mouth sores, acne, fuzzy thinking, light headed and severe fatigue and body aches. Thank goodness I checked out this webpage, as I too will stop taking this drug. I find it very disappointing, how are we suppose to be able to trust our medical professionals to help us with one of our most prized possessions, our bodies, when we are given something to clear up an ear infection only to have it affect numerous other aspects of our lives to such a serious degree with no mention from our medical professionals. This is ridiculous. I guess I'll live with the viral ear infection.......

My 4 yr old son has been on Singulair for a little over a month...prescribed after asthma attack and severe allergies. He has been a different child, extremely aggressive, out-of-control, and very hyper. I am so tired of having to get on to him constantly, and am realizing he has no control over his behavior. In addition, he just suffered another round of illness, this time also had an ear infection. Now I'm reading respiratory and ear infections are also side effects, how crazy is that?! We are stopping Singulair TODAY...I feel so bad for keeping my child on this medicine at all!!

I'm an adult female with severe sinus polyps, adult onset asthma and allergies. Initially Singular seemed to be helping my nasal polyps, when nothing else helped in any way. I made several attempts to use Singular, and proved repeatedly that this medication did, in fact, cause me severe side effects - even when I used a childs dosage. While using an adult rx for Singular, I immediately began experiencing horrific nightmares (which I have never had in my entire life). I also had extreme knife like pains in both ears, which made me feel like I had a severe ear infection, chest pains where it felt like a cinder block was lying on my chest, and migraine like headaches (which I've never had). I stopped the medication after about a week and the nightmares went completely away, but it took me a couple weeks to recover completely because I developed what felt like a respiratory infection and ear infection as soon as I stopped using it. Because Singular seemed to slightly reduce my nasal polyps on my first attempt, my allergist suggested I try using it again - almost a year later. When I first began, I completely forgot about the negative side effect and why I stopped using it in the first place, and just gave it another try. I again experienced the same horrific nightmares, ear pains, but this time got a strange rash/cluster of blisters under both eyelids which my eye doctor confirmed was an allergic reaction to something I was using. Singular was the only medication I had changed. My allergist thought I should give it longer to see if the symptoms went away (because they probably weren't caused by this medication - and were due to something else ???). Fearing going to sleep, I decided to try taking the medication in the morning instead of night, and had my physician reduce my rx to a childs dosage (5mg). The nightmares lessened, and the blisters under my eyelids went down, so I continued using Singular for about a years time. What I didn't realize, was that over this time I was becoming depressed, fatigued, and became easily agitated and short-tempered, which was very different since I was normally a very happy, energetic mom. My nasal breathing seemed to be slightly improved, so I just kept taking the medication - not realizing that it was causing all of the other problems I was experiencing. I became so fatigued and depressed feeling, that all I wanted to do after I got my kids off to school was to sleep until it was time to pick them up in the afternoon. I was also experiencing stomach pains for unknown reasons. I was certainly not myself. I didn't realize that while I was using Singular I had lost complete interest in everything that I normally loved in my life. And please note I'm 45 years old, and I was using a childs dosage. ( I can only imagine what this medication does to a child. )Fortunately for me, I accidentally forgot to refill my prescription for a few days and noticed that my depression started to improve. I decided not to refill my rx and stay off it to see if I continued to improve - and I have. Unfortunately, even though my depression has all but gone away, I'm experiencing symptoms which must be from withdrawal of the medication - and they are just as scary as the side effects were. Now that I'm not taking Singulair any more (and I've made no other medication changes), I have extreme fatigue beyond belief, and ache everywhere. My muscles are in such pain that I'm having difficulty doing things I would normally do. I have extreme weakness in both arms and legs, and my back aches almost constantly. And strangly enough, my asthma and allergies have slightly improved since stopping Singular - I thought for sure my allergies/asthma would worsen when I stopped completely - but they did not. All I can say is - please trust what your body is telling you - even if your physician tells you otherwise, and do not use this medication or any other if you experience adverse side effects to it. I would never give this medication to a child that wasn't old enough to tell me what he/she was experiencing, and would document the childs temperament, ailments if any, and what changed once the medication was started - and discontinue it immediately if even one adverse side effects occurred. One last note - I am still experiencing vision problems, which I feel are due to using this medication. Hopefully, no other permanent damage to my body will result from the Singular that I've already used - and I hope you Singular users will recover completely too from its dangerous side effects. Wishing you the best of health!

My 15 month old son was just put on this Friday, four days ago. He had been on Zyrtec since he was five months old and his allergies had recently gotten worse along with a percistant cough. As the weekend went on he became more and more angry and fidgety. Sunday afternoon, after his nap he came running down the hall screaming and crying (this nap is usually 1 1/2 hours long and he had only been asleep for 30 to 45 minutes when this happened). He was very upset for about 20 minutes. He is normally a very happy, fun loving child. Later that afternoon he didn't get his way and took it out on me. He began to kick and scream(at the top of his lungs) , throwing his head back, and then hitting me. Everyone that was with us have been around him from day one and they all said how he wasn't himself and had never seen him act this way. Now, this morning on our drive into town to go to daycare he normally is talking the whole way (45 minutes) but this morning he was just staring off out the window and didn't want to talk or "have a conversation" with me. I knew something wasn't right and had already had it in my head he wasn't getting another dose of this. I found this site and some of the little things began to jump out at me and I know for sure we aren't going to take this again. I just hope and pray that this hasn't caused any lasting side effects, again he has only been on it for 4 days. After reading all of this I have called the daycare to check and the doctor, who hasn't called me back yet. Going to see his ENT tomorrow and we will be having a long conversation about it all. His ped. is the doctor who put him on it. She is trying to try everything before he is put on a nebulizer.

Another side effect named on the Singulair web site is ear infections. This med. should have never been given to my son who has already had one round of tubes because of ear infections. The tubes have already fallen out and within a week he had an ear infection.

UPDATE: Our nightmare with SINGULAIR has not ended! After reading "conerned citizens" report discussing the possiblility of Singulair causing asthma blew me away. My son was put on this drug for food allergies not asthma b/c they thought of his two anaphylaxsis episodes in 5 days. 1 food related the other unknown (maybe outdoor mold?) He had no prior issues with breathing.

He has been off of it for almost 2 weeks however over the last week he has slowly developed some breathing issues. After getting off of it, he still has his ear infection from the second day of being on it and last Friday after playing some basketball began to seem like he was winded so I brought him in. He was having trouble breathing. I called the Dr. and he said it could be excercised induced asthma. He is a very active boy who runs non stop and has NEVER had breathing issues before Singulair! It seemed to pass after a few hours. The next fews days he coughed a few times when playing and I thought what the heck is happening to him. Monday at school they didn't go outside so he was fine b/c he didn't run around. Tuesday, they came to get me b/c he was having trouble breathing and one of his teachers whose son has asthma said I think you better give him an inhaler. I called the Dr. ASAP and he approved us to borrow another child's. He freaked out and wouldn't let us give it to him. After 2 epi-shots in the previous weeks, he wanted nothing to do with that. At school the next day, we made him take the inhaler if he wanted to go out to playso he did. He didn't cough but a few times. No excercise at all. Then last night, he got really bad. He started to cough and couldn't stop to the point of gaging and it seemed as though he had developed a ton of phlem and kept trying to swallow. We ended up in the ER where we were told that he has asthma! I am so furious! I don't get this at all! If this report is accurate and my son got asthma by going on it - this will be devastating. We kept him home today from school and took him into the Dr. b/c he continued to cough all night. He is now on Flovent, Albuterol and has an enebulizer. I'm probably the only one of all of us who child did not have asthma to begin with.

Has anyone who did not have asthma before singulair now have any issues? Please let me know!

My four year old son was put on Singulair about a month and a half ago for allergies/very light asthma. I was told that it would help him to possibly outgrow those conditions, and that we would re-evaluate in six months. At first I wasn't very consistent with giving it to him, but for the last two weeks or so he has had it every night before bed. For the last week he has not been himself. Whining a lot, upset about very little things, much more aggressive towards his sister, hitting, kicking, throwing fits. Twice this week his day care center staff pulled me aside and said he has been acting horribly. Upset about little things, angry, kicking, not listening, being very defiant...in short not acting like himself. Same as what we are seeing at home. It's like his behavior has regressed back to a two year old or worse.

I made an appointment for him today because of these behavior problems, plus he seems to be suffering a possible ear infection and bronchitis again anyway, which is what we started on the meds for in the first place. A co-worker remembered that we had recently started medication, and inquired about whether or not I thought that could be causing the behavioral issues. I did a search on google and came to this site. Reading these stories is like a light bulb switched on in my head! I feel horrible, why didn't I think to ask about side effects, why didn't I think about the meds being a possible cause of his behavior? No matter what the doctor says today, I am taking him off the Singular immediately. I will be in search of natural remedies to treat his allergies.

As a pediatrician I write for singulair every day.
The medication is for allergies.
Allergies cause adenoidal swelling, which cause sleep disturbances which makes the child tired the next day with makes him over weight, less attentive, hyper and eventually act out.
This in turn makes the child experience parental, peers and teachers criticism/ abuse, with leads to the child feel inadequate, embarrassed, frustrated and eventually depressed and suicidal.

Yes, singulair does cause behavioral change but they appear within the first couple of peels, the rest is due to allergies, lack of medical care, i.e. sleep, singulair, and zyrtec deficiency.
Allergy shots cause 4 times the incidence of suicidally than singulair, and Ritalin 10 times more.
They say in hebrew "once a stone is thrown into a well, thousands of smart people won't find it".
Check it, it's true.

I have a 19 month old baby and she was prescribed Singulair when she was 15 months old after a bad bout of pneumonia. So she has been on it for 4 months and I haven't seen any severe side effects. To be honest, I am one of those people that follows whatever her pediatrician recommends and I trust that after 25 years as a doctor, he knows what he is doing. But all of these reports are now terrifying me. I haven't noticed any change in her behavior or moods, and she has always been a very rambunctious baby so if there has been any change (like increased aggression or anxiety) it is hard to tell in such a small child. Has anyone had any experience giving Singulair to a child this young (under 2)?

SINGULAIR is a prescription medicine approved to help control symptoms of asthma in adults and children 12 months and older.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION About SINGULAIR
SINGULAIR will NOT replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms. Continue to take your other asthma medicines as prescribed and have fast-acting medication available. If your asthma symptoms get worse or you need to increase the use of your fast-acting inhaler, call your doctor at once.

Side effects are generally mild and vary by age, and may include headache, ear infection, sore throat, and upper respiratory infection. Check with your doctor if you are pregnant or nursing. SINGULAIR is available by prescription only.

My 8yo son has been on Singulair for his asthma for about 2 weeks and he has complained of a 'sick tummy' regularly, ending up in tears because he can't do things. We have had a long run of this, perhaps due to the 8 lots of penicillin for tonsillitis, and some tummy bugs going around the schools I work in. The doctor has been suggesting irritable bowel syndrome so we didn't think of the Singulair side effects until it has got so bad that he is not going to school.He has been unusually clingy and almost paranoid about small things that don't usually worry him over the past couple of weeks. We were trying these tablets as he has been on steroid based preventer since he was 3 and we wanted to get him off the cortisone stuff. After reading here he is off the Singulair today and we will report the side effects to the paediatrician.

Hi all,
I've been taking it for a month now and for the last 2 weeks I,ve been having nightmares every single night, severe musle pain in my legs, my arms feel weak and shaky, my mouth and nose are extremely dry. I have itchy skin - the itchiness attacks are so bad - I can't control them, and also I have very strange headaches -at the back of my head and neck - not just a muscle tension, migrating all over the scalp.
I don't have an asthma, but I had a very bad sinus and ear infection, and was feeling dizzy, so my doctor advised me to give it a try. Singulair has eliminated those symptoms in 2 days, but the side effects are even worser.

my 5 year old son has been taking singulair for reactive airway disease for just over a year. since he began taking the medicine, he has slowly become more and more distracted, irritable, moody, aggressive, anxiety ridden and clingy. the anxiety has been especially noticeable-he's developed odd phobias and fear of things like semi trucks and spiders and riding in the car. (things he never had a problem with before, and things that seem odd for a 5 year old to be worrying about) he also has had regular complaints of stomach pains (especially first thing in the morning), headaches and pain in his ears (which he has seen the doctor for on more than once occasion, and each time i've been told that there was no ear infection). he recently started kindergarten and his teacher has also noticed that he seems spacey and inattentive, as well as restless and "lost in his own world". due to the fact that there are several people on my husband's side of the family who have been diagnosed with ADD, we were beginning to feel that perhaps our son had it, too. we've been doing research and have spoken with his teacher and the school counselor about possible ADD, and just tonight we were sitting down and filling out an ADD checkpoint questionnaire for the school. i happened to glance at some of the reference material the school counselor sent to us along with the questionnaire, and i noticed that one of the points of reference for ADD diagnosis is that the person in question isn't on any "highly stimulating medications." it was right at that moment when i put two and two together and realized that our son's symptoms began right after he began taking singulair, so i came online to do a side effect web search, which is how i found this site. i can not believe how shocked i am to read all these other people's experiences with this medication!! i feel terrible that i've been making my son take something so questionable for so long, and i feel just as bad that i was about to seriously consider putting him on ADD medication!! now i am definitely going to try taking him off the singulair first and see if that changes his behavior! thank you all so much for sharing your stories. they really do help!

My daughter is 5 years old and has been on singulair for 1 week. i have already noticed a dramatic change in her behavior. she has become irritable, mean, nasty, and emotional. she has had me in tears on a daily basis. she has turned into a monster. we will be calling the doctor in the morning!

I had previously taken singulair for asthma and seemed fine! So fine I stopped taking singulair end of December 2006. Recently, I noticed I needed my inhaler a couple of times a day--I exercise vigorously 5-6 days a week. I asked my GYN to re-prescribe. Started my first 10 mg dose Wednesday evening (!8Apr), Friday afternoon I had a sore throat..pretty severe by day's end--Saturday I had full blown bronchitis (upper respiratory infection) Had to dust off my nebulizer.
Love Merck's disclaimer: Side effects are generally mild and vary by age, and may include headache, ear infection, SORE THROAT, and UPPER RESPIRATORY INFECTION. Side effects generally did not stop patients from taking SINGULAIR. IS IT WORTH IT? DOES IT GET BETTER?

My daughter has been taking Singulair for less than a year for her asthma. We have noticed that she is extremely hyper and that She is almost 7 yrs old and has an ear infection once to twice a month and they alternate. I was seriously considering tubes in her ear until i found a site saying singulair causes ear infections. I immediatly stoppped her medication and we are now free of ear infections. I almost put her through a surgical procedure and her Dr. who prescribed this drug to her was going to let me... I told him what i did and he was like yes singulair can give a pt hear infections but he didn't say that every week i was in his office when she was on it. gggrrrrrrrr

My son is 2 and a half years old. He's been on Cingular for a little over 3 months. Prior to being on Cingular he had only had one ear infection his entire life. Since Singular, he's had 4 ear infections. I consulted the Singular website and it noted ear infections as a side effect. He has also started waking up in the middle of the night in horrid rage. My husband and I have to stand back and wait for the destruction to end since we don't think he's truly awake-- not about to punish him for that. I didn't realize it until reading these posts but we've been noticing something evil natured growing in what was a very sweet boy. We thought it was just his age but now I'm not so sure... Time to get our angel back!

Well, I couldn't figure out where I got this whopping ear infection...like swimmer's ear. I never get ear infections, even as a kid. Also, I am on Weight Watchers and have lost 20 lbs in a couple of months. Everything was progressing nicely until I took Singulair. The weight loss stopped, even though I was doing the same routine! After ditching Singulair, I'm back on track. I give this medicine a thumbs down.

I have been on Singulair for about 2 1/2 years...I thought it was a miracle drug. The asthma I had been strapped with since I was 7 yrs old (40 yrs old now) seemed to subside greatly. Last week, I went to the doctor with another ear infection...something that has been extremely common in the last several years. I had never before had ear problems..even as a child. My mother heard Singulair advertised on TV and one of the possible side effects was ear aches and ear infections. Could Singulair be the culprit? Is this why both of my ears are stopped up going on 6 days now? Ugh...I WILL be contacting my doctor tomorrow!

Ear infection