EFFECT OF OXATOMIDE ON OTITIS-MEDIA WITH EFFUSION - AN EXPERIMENTAL-STUDY

The therapeutic effect of oxatomide on experimental otitis media with effusion (OME) induced by secondary immune response was investigated i n chinchillas. Oxatomide was administered daily in three different dos es (5, 10, 30 mg/kg b.w.t.) for a period of 2 weeks, starting 2 days a fter the instillation of keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) into the tymp anic cavity. The severity of OME was assessed by observing the eardrum under a surgical microscope, by tympanography, and by histological fi ndings. The concentrations of leukotriene C4 and LTD4 in middle ear ef fusion (MEE) were also measured, 7 days after the KLH instillation. It was found that oral administration of oxatomide in dosages of 10 and 30 mg/kg alleviated the experimental OME. The mean LTD4 concentration measured in MEE from chinchillas given 30 mg oxatomide was significant ly lower than that measured in the control group. The radioactivity of C-14-labelled oxatomide in MEE and the autoradiographic findings reve aled that orally administered oxatomide was rapidly absorbed from the digestive tract and transported to the middle ear via blood circulatio n. The findings suggest that the effect of oxatomide can be anticipate d in patients with OME.