Persistence of middle ear dysfunction after recurrent acute otitis media

The presence of otitis media with effusion (OME) and high negative pressure (-200 to -400 mm H2O), were investigated in the follow-up of a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial on the efficacy of amoxicillin/clavulanic acid in the treatment of acute otitis media. All children in this study were recruited from a general practice population. Tympanometry results 1 month from the start of an episode of acute otitis media were taken as outcome criteria. Bilateral middle ear dysfunction was defined as bilateral OME, unilateral OME and contralateral or bilateral high negative pressure. Bilateral middle ear dysfunction was present in 47.9% of the patients. Of all the investigated factors of possible influence (age, sex, season, laterality of acute otitis media, therapy, and clinical course of acute otitis media), only season showed a statistically significant influence on the persistence of OME/high negative pressure (P = 0.001). Bilateral middle ear dysfunction was shown to be of prognostic value for the risk of a recurrence of acute otitis media (odds ratio 3.75).