title: Pneumococcal vaccination in children at risk of developing recurrent acute otitis media - a randomized study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Acute otitis media (AOM) is a common childhood disease, which often becomes recurrent (rAOM). A small reduction in AOM episodes has been noted in unselected child cohorts after vaccination with heptavalent conjugate pneumococcal vaccine (PCV7). The purpose of this study was to investigate how vaccination affects young children at risk of developing rAOM.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ninety-six children with an AOM onset before 6 months of age, implying a high risk for rAOM, were closely monitored until the age of 2 years. Forty-six were vaccinated with PCV7 and 50 were not. All episodes of AOM, emergency visits and ventilation tube insertions were registered.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 363 AOM episodes were diagnosed. The incidence was reduced by 26% (p = 0.03), the number of emergency visits because of suspected AOM by 36% (p = 0.01) and the proportion of children who received ventilation tubes was halved in the vaccine group (p = 0.02).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  During the first 2 years of life, PCV7 significantly reduced AOM episodes, emergency visits and ventilation tube insertions in children with rAOM. Pneumococcal vaccine may be a future route to reduce antibiotic use and health care consumption in otitis-prone children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Lund University Hospital, Lund, Sweden. marie.solen@gmail.com
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gisselsson-Solén
authors.forename: Asa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Melhus
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hermansson
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004638:Emergency Treatment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D010033:Otitis Media / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy; D022242:Pneumococcal Vaccines; D012008:Recurrence
chemical_list: D022242:Pneumococcal Vaccines