Effect of otitis media with effusion on gross motor ability in preschool-aged children: preliminary findings.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate whether gross motor skills in preschool-aged children 24 to 60 months old with otitis media with effusion (OME) are different from those of preschool children without OME.


METHODS
The gross motor portion of the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales (PDMS-GM) was used to compare 13 children with OME before and after tympanostomy tube placement to 12 children without OME.


RESULTS
The children with OME had significantly reduced scores preoperatively compared to those without OME on the PDMS-GM. After surgery, the children with OME had higher scores than those without OME, indicating an accelerated rate of development.


CONCLUSIONS
Balance and motor development are additional factors to be considered in the medical and surgical management of the young child with chronic OME. Chronic OME may represent an additional problem for young children with existing motor deficits or other disabilities.
Orlin
M N
MN
Medical College of Pennsylvania and Hahnemann University, USA.
Effgen
S K
SK
Handler
S D
SD
D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008876:Middle Ear Ventilation; D009048:Motor Skills; D010034:Otitis Media with Effusion / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery; D015203:Reproducibility of Results