Hematoma in flap of ear and skin problems in the autumn

Question
My 6 year old golden retriever underwent an operation 3 weeks ago for a hematoma in the flap of her ear. Before this operation she had the ear bandaged on the top of her head and went on prednisone, ear drops and allergy medication for two weeks. As soon as we took the bandage off the ear swelled up (this was after wearing the bandage for two weeks) so we went ahead with the operation and kept up the medications, slightly reducing the prednisone over time.  We took the stitches out after a week and the next day the ear slightly swelled. She went back in and had it drained and the bandage reapplied (ear back on top of head) for another week.  The bandage was removed last Wednesday and on Friday the ear began to swell again as well as an ozing scab on the side of her check even though there hasn't been much scratching going on!What do I do now? Do we go back to the same vet and do the operation again? Do I wait to see what happens? She has been getting this skin condition every September for about 3 years - she normally ends up with ozing scabs in a number of places. What are the long term side effects of prednisone? Thank you for helping Maggie.

Answer
The vet may need to resuture the ear up and leave the stitches in for 3 weeks.  In addition, there may be an ear infection that is causing the dog to continue shaking its head. I have started using a laser to do these surgeries becaus the drainage holes stay open longer to prevent re-accumulation of fluid in the ear.