Comparing Cerumen Bacterial Flora in Acute Otitis Externa Patients and Healthy Controls

Introduction: In spite of the fact that acute otitis media is a systemic and symptomatic disease with sever otalgia, otitis media with effusion (OME) is an asymptomatic and silent disease. OME is the most common cause of conductive hearing loss in children and has adverse effects on speech development and cognitive skills. Results: Among 1001 children under study, 57 subjects (5.7%) were diagnosed with OME, more than 50% of which were asymptomatic. Periodic otalgia and turning up television volume were the most common symptoms. Conclusion: Regarding the improved knowledge on diagnosis and treatment of OME especially in younger children, hearing problems or cognitive and linguistic skills retardation may be avoided by promoting general information.