Otomycosis: a survey in the eastern province of Saudi Arabia

The Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia is characterized by a high perennial relative humidity and atmospheric pressure. One hundred and forty-eight cases clinically suspected of being otomycotic were examined by culture over a period of 13 months; 120 gave positive results and yielded 131 fungal isolates, of which 110 were single infections and 10 mixed infections of two or more fungi. A. niger was the most common (51.15%), then A. flavus (18.32%) Penicillium notatum (5.34%), C. albicans and A. terreus (each 4.58%) A. candidus (3.82%), Mucor spo (2.29%), Alternaria spo and A. clavatus (each 1.53%) and A. versicolor (0.76%). The patients were of 13 different nationalities, mostly labourers and people of low socio-economic standard. Males were affected more than females and ages ranged from 2 to 58 years. Thus racial factors, sex and age have no bearing on otomycosis. Only 8 of the 120 positive cases were affected bilaterally. The role of relative humidity and high atmospheric pressure was briefly discussed.