@Nursechatter: The tympanogram would measure whether the tube is patent or not. You are also complaining that you’re not hearing on that side, so it would document the nature and degree of the loss. These would help give insight on why you have not noticed improvement and what needs to be done next.
PE tubes are a very common procedure – I remember reading a statistic when my son was getting them (15–18 years ago) that circumcision was the only procedure that was performed more often in the US… but that doesn’t mean that everything goes right 100% of the time – that is a statistical impossibility with any procedure – nothing and no one is perfect.
That is why pre- and post-op hearing tests should be routine IMO, to ensure that the cause of the loss is indeed fluid behind the eardrum before the procedure; and that the tube is doing what it should after the procedure. Documenting the nature and degree of loss and post-op changes is good for both the surgeon and the patient. In nearly 20 years of practicing, I have seen some of those rare instances when the outcome wasn’t ‘textbook’.
If you do have the expected improvement by the time the appointment comes, you can always cancel the hearing test; but if you don’t, it will help give you and the surgeon some answers as to why not, and information to determine the next plan of action.
Hopefully, everything will resolve on it’s own before then, and this will be a moot point. Keep following your post-op instructions as directed regarding the use of the ear drops, taking any pain relief, and the application of heat, such as a hot water bottle against the ear, to soothe the discomfort. Feel better soon!