The prevalence of atopic symptoms in children with otitis media with effusion.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the prevalence of allergic symptoms in children with otitis media with effusion (OME).


METHODS
A validated questionnaire from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood was used to determine the prevalence of allergic symptoms in children. The questionnaire was completed by the parents of children with OME undergoing ventilation tube insertion, and the results were compared with a large reference group of school children of the same age.


METHODS
Children aged 6 or 7 years old with OME confirmed intraoperatively during ventilation tube insertion between 2001 and 2005 (n=89). The prevalence of allergic symptoms and nasal symptoms in children with OME was compared with an age-matched reference group.


RESULTS
There was no difference in the prevalence of allergic symptoms suggesting rhinoconjunctivitis, asthma, or eczema between the OME and reference group. The prevalence of nasal symptoms, however, was greater in the children with OME than in the reference group 38.2 percent versus 23.5 percent (odds ratio=2.01; 95% confidence interval, 1.30-3.10; P<0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of allergic symptoms was similar in 6- to 7-year-old children with OME and the reference group, suggesting a limited effect of allergy in the pathogenesis of OME in this age group. Nasal symptoms were more common in the OME group, which may reflect a higher prevalence of adenoidal hyperplasia.
Souter
Melanie Anne
MA
Starship Children's Hospital, Department of Paediatrics: Child and Youth Health, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
Mills
Nicola Anne
NA
Mahadevan
Murali
M
Douglas
Gavin
G
Ellwood
Philippa Ellen
PE
Asher
Monica Innes
MI
Clayton
Tadd Oliver
TO
Douglas
Richard George
RG
D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008876:Middle Ear Ventilation / Q000295:instrumentation; D010034:Otitis Media with Effusion / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000601:surgery; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires