LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF OTITIS-MEDIA WITH EFFUSION - OTOMICROSCOPIC FINDINGS

A cohort of 946 children who were screened for otitis media with effus ion (OME) by serial tympanometry from the age of 2 to 4 years was foll owed up by otomicroscopy at 7.5 to 8 years of age. At school age, sign s of active middle ear disease were present in 2.2% of ears that had b een free from OME at preschool age, whereas 12.7% of ears that had suf fered from persistent OME and 17.8% of ears that had been treated by a ventilation tube showed signs of active middle ear disease. Otopathol ogic sequelae (atrophy, tympanosclerosis, atelectasis, and attic retra ction) were present in 13.7%, 39.8%, and 87.3% of these ears, respecti vely. A duration-response effect was found in the association between preschool OME and these sequelae at school age. The high prevalence of otoscopic abnormalities found in this population calls for further fo llow-up and evaluation of their functional implications.