Abstract
To determine whether antimicrobial therapy is of value in the treatment of chronic otitis media with effusion (secretory otitis media), we treated 1,429 4- to 8-year-old children—2224 affected ears—with a fixed regimen of an antibiotic mixture (Pediazole) for 10 days and a decongestant (Novated) for 30 days. We observed the children monthly to determine the rate of clearance. Validity of diagnosis was greater than 90% with an algorithm of pneumatic otoscopy and tympanometry. Medication compliance was not measured. At 1 month, 45% of the children (48% of the ears) had cleared and at 2 months, 60% of the children (63% of the ears) had cleared. Factors such as sex and prior treatment in the preceding 3 months were no different in the cured vs. the uncured groups. Age significantly Influenced the cure rate (P < 0.0001); the older the child, the higher the clearance rate. Tympanograms type 5, 8, and 12–14 were significantly more prevalent in the uncleared group (P = 0.0001). The clear rate for unilateral cases was 76% and for bilateral cases, 47% (P < 0.0001). Children with chronic otitis media with effusion are most likely to be cured by medical therapy/time if they are older, have unilateral disease, or a peaked tympanogram. Surgery should be withheld in these children for 2 or more months to permit the highest rate of spontaneous resolution.
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