Otitis Media News and Research

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Acute otitis media (AOM) is a common childhood disease with important ramifications to the overall health of infants and young children. The peak incidence of AOM occurs at 6 to 18 months of age, but it can also occur in older children. Complications of AOM include persistent middle ear effusion, chronic otitis media, transient hearing loss, or speech delays.

Reduction in secondhand smoking associated with fewer cases of middle ear infection among children

Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers and colleagues from Research Institute for a Tobacco Free Society have found that a reduction in secondhand smoking in American homes was associated with fewer cases of otitis media, the scientific name for middle ear infection. The study appears on January 26, 2011, as an online first article on the website of the journal Tobacco Control.

28 Jan 2011

NQF implements quality measures pertaining to ambulatory emergency and urgent care

To improve healthcare quality and give patients and providers more information about the results of care, the National Quality Forum has endorsed 16 ambulatory care measures, with a particular focus on emergency and urgent care.

19 Jan 2011

Antibiotics need to be used only when diagnosis of acute ear infection is certain

A new study showed that antibiotics are more effective than previously thought in the treatment of acute ear infection (namely acute otitis media) in young children. However, half of the children became better without antibiotics. Expectedly, antibiotics caused more adverse events. Antibiotics should be used only when the diagnosis of acute ear infection is certain.

13 Jan 2011

Antibiotics for ear infection in kids better than watchful waiting: Study

Findings from two latest clinical trials reveal that a young child with ear infections recovers faster and more completely if doctors give antibiotics right away rather than waiting to see if the kid get better on his/her own. One of the studies was in the U.S. and one in Finland. Earlier it has been debated that for young children with middle ear infections or otitis media whether immediate antibiotic treatment was better than watchful waiting. Current treatment recommendations in the U.S., Canada, and Europe allow for a watch-and-wait approach to suspected middle ear infections in young children. Change is coming, predicts study leader Alejandro Hoberman, MD, of Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

12 Jan 2011

How parents gauge level of ear pain in preverbal children

Levels of pain severity from ear aches observed and reported by parents of preverbal children can be influenced as much by socioeconomic status and other non-clinical factors as symptoms unless physicians ask about specific observable symptoms, according to research in The Journal of Pain, published by the American Pain Society.

30 Dec 2010

Pfizer seeks FDA and EMA approval for expanded use of Prevnar 13 for pneumococcal disease

Pfizer Inc today announced that it has submitted supplemental applications to both the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to expand the use of Prevnar 13® (Pneumococcal 13-valent Conjugate Vaccine [Diphtheria CRM197 Protein]) to adults 50 years of age and older for the prevention of pneumococcal disease caused by the 13 serotypes contained in the vaccine.

23 Dec 2010

Researchers recommend 'watchful waiting' over antibiotic treatment for many children with ear infections

As middle ear infections increase during the winter months, researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) suggest that in many cases the most appropriate treatment is "watchful waiting" instead of using antibiotics immediately.

20 Dec 2010

Prevenar 13 launched in first childhood immunization program for PD in Nicaragua

Pfizer Inc. announced that Prevenar 13 (Pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine [13-valent, adsorbed]) was introduced into the first childhood immunization program for pneumococcal disease (PD) in the developing world under the auspices of the Advance Market Commitment (AMC) when Nicaragua launched its program today. The AMC is an innovative program which involves private-public partnerships to help make newer vaccines available on a sustainable, affordable and accelerated basis to the least developed countries.

13 Dec 2010

Looking back and moving forward: 100 years of Pneumococcal vaccination

"Since the introduction of smallpox vaccination by Sir Edward Jenner in 1796, it took 184 years until the WHO could declare the world free of smallpox. How long will it take to eliminate pneumococcus from the world?"

25 Nov 2010

Otoscopic exams critical for accurate diagnosis of ear infections in children

Among the findings of an analysis of previous studies regarding ear infections in children are that results from otoscopic exams (an instrument for examining the interior of the ear) are critical to accurate diagnosis and antibiotics are modestly more effective than no treatment, with most antibiotics demonstrating similar rates of clinical success among children at normal risk, according to an article in the November 17 issue of JAMA.

17 Nov 2010

BUSM professor wins 2010 Maurice Wood Award for Lifetime Contribution to Primary Care Research

Larry Culpepper, MD, MPH, chair and professor of family medicine at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and chief of family medicine at Boston Medical Center (BMC), is the recipient of the 2010 Maurice Wood Award for Lifetime Contribution to Primary Care Research.

16 Nov 2010

NIAID announces four new contracts for clinical trials to address problem of antimicrobial resistance

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, today announced four new contracts for large-scale clinical trials that address the problem of antimicrobial resistance.

20 Oct 2010

Researchers find significant difference between prevalence of tinnitus among elderly people

Tinnitus is common among elderly Nigerians and associated with treatable health conditions like otitis media, rhinosinusitis, head injury and hypertension, according to new research published in the October 2010 issue of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery.

8 Oct 2010

Fluctuation in PCV-7 vaccine dosing time increases pneumococcal serotype 19A strains: Study

Infants who received heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccination (PCV-7) at 2, 4, and 11 months were more likely than unvaccinated controls to have nasopharyngeal (in the nasal passages and upper part of the throat behind the nose) acquisition of pneumococcal serotype 19A, a leading cause of respiratory pneumococcal disease, according to a study in the September 8 issue of JAMA.

8 Sep 2010

Otonomy announces closing of $38.5 million Series B financing

Otonomy, Inc. announced today that it has closed a $38.5 million Series B financing co-led by Novo Ventures and RiverVest Venture Partners, and joined by Domain Associates and TPG Biotech. This financing is incremental to the $10 million Series A closed with Avalon Ventures in June 2010. Avalon also participated in the Series B round.

30 Aug 2010

Pfizer's Prevenar 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine receives WHO prequalification

The World Health Organization (WHO) has granted prequalification to Prevenar 13 (Pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine [13-valent, adsorbed])for active immunization of infants and children from 6 weeks through five years of age against invasive disease, pneumonia and otitis media caused by the 13 pneumococcal serotypes (1, 3, 4, 5, 6A, 6B, 7F, 9V, 14, 18C, 19A, 19F and 23F) contained in the vaccine.

24 Aug 2010

Many ED patients could have been treated in an urgent care center: Study

The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) National Health Statistics Reports shows continued use of the nation's emergency rooms for conditions that could be treated in an urgent care setting.

20 Aug 2010

Researchers find disparities among children suffering from repeated ear infections

Research has documented that ethnic and socioeconomic disparities exist among patients with conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. Now, a new study by researchers from UCLA and Harvard University has found disparities among children suffering from repeated ear infections. The findings, published in the August edition of the journal Laryngoscope, show that frequent ear infections plague white children and children living below the poverty level more than children of other racial or ethnic backrounds or income levels.

10 Aug 2010

Store-and-forward telemedicine as effective as in-person evaluation for planning ear surgery: Study

The 2010 Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO of the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery Foundation,the largest meeting of ear, nose, and throat doctors in the world, will convene September 26-29, in Boston, MA. The official abstract supplement for the annual meeting is now available with the regular August 2010 issue of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery.

2 Aug 2010

Communication between bacterial species promotes resistance to antibiotics: Study

Ear infections caused by more than one species of bacteria could be more persistent and antibiotic-resistant because one pathogen may be communicating with the other, encouraging it to bolster its defenses. Interrupting or removing that communication could be key to curing these infections. Researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center publish their findings today in mBio-, the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology.

7 Jul 2010