title: Effect of climate on the bacteriology of chronic suppurative otitis media.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We evaluated the correlation between the microbial content of chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) and regional climatic parameters.
  
  
  METHODS
  We assessed the interrelations between monthly mean records of temperature, maximum temperature, atmospheric pressure, and humidity and the aerobic microbial flora in CSOM.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Forty-three bacteria of Enterobacteriaceae, 67 staphylococcal spp, 51 Pseudomonas aeruginosa, 9 Streptococcus pneumoniae, 1 alpha-hemolytic Streptococcus, 1 Enterococcus sp, and 2 Edwardsiella tarda strains were recovered from 173 patients with CSOM. There was a good relationship between enteric bacteria and monthly mean temperature (r = 0.501) and significant colonization rates due to increasing monthly mean temperature (p = .040) and monthly mean maximum temperature values (p = .048).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  When the weather warmed, the frequency of isolation of enteric bacteria increased significantly. Temperature changes may affect the enteric bacterial colonization of CSOM.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Cumhuriyet University Medical Faculty, Sivas , Turkey.
authors.forename: Altan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yildirim
authors.forename: Hakan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Erdem
authors.forename: Selim
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kilic
authors.forename: Sertac
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yetiser
authors.forename: Alaaddin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pahsa
mesh_terms: D001274:Atmospheric Pressure; D001419:Bacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002980:Climate; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D004755:Enterobacteriaceae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D006813:Humidity; D010034:Otitis Media with Effusion / Q000382:microbiology*; D013696:Temperature