title: Analysis and presentation of data on the natural course of otitis media with effusion in children.
abstract: Methods of analysing and presenting longitudinal data on health characteristics that have a fluctuating course are by no means standard. Several possibilities are discussed and tried out on longitudinal data on Otitis Media with Effusion (OME) in Dutch children. If the purpose of a study is descriptive, a graphical presentation based on an idea from Fiellau-Nikolajsen is preferred. For estimation purposes on the other hand, hazard functions are the most suitable. Further reduction of the data does not lead to a clear view into the complex nature of the course of a disease such as OME.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Nijmegen University, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: G A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Zielhuis
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Straatman
authors.forename: G H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Rach
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: van den Broek
mesh_terms: D000158:Acoustic Impedance Tests; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008390:Markov Chains; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D010034:Otitis Media with Effusion / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012008:Recurrence