Clinical course of otitis media in children and character of severe otitis media

Abstract

  To determine whether otitis media will be severe or not and its sequelae, I studied the clinical course of severe otitis media and character of the tympanic membrane of 2,000 children under the age of 15 with acute otitis media (AOM) or otitis media with effusion (OME) who visited Kato Ear Nose Throat Clinic from September 2005 to March 2008. The tympanic membrane was photographed using a rigid otoscope with a CCD camera. In September 2010, for a clinical course, I retrospectively investigated the age at the first incidence of otitis media, characteristics of the tympanic membrane, the side of the diseased ear, the age at the recurrence of final otitis media, and the number of recurrences. I found that 30% of all cases had a single episode of AOM, 30% of all cases with an incidence of AOM after follow-up had severe otitis media, 50% with an incidence of AOM at 0-years-old had severe otitis media, and 40% with an incidence of AOM at 1-year-old had severe otitis media. The findings of the tympanic membrane observed most often in severe otitis media were effusion in the tympanic cavity not lasting more than one month. The next was bulla formation on the tympanic membrane, otorrhea, crust, spots under the tympanic membrane, and throbbing of the tympanic membrane.