Prevalence of otitis media with effusion among school going children in Bangladesh

Prevalence of ear morbidities among school children in Delhi, India: a cross-sectional study

Objectives Hearing impairment and ear diseases are among the world's leading causes of years lived with disability. Ear disorders are a major health problem in developing countries like India. The present research had been planned to screen the primary school children for ear morbidity and to study the various factors associated with ear morbidities so that corrective intervention can be initiated at the earliest. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among all primary school children of two schools in Aliganj, Delhi. Complete enumeration of all the school children of these two primary schools was planned for this study. Modified version of World Health Organization's (WHO's) "Ten Question Plus" screening instrument was used, followed by Otoscopy examination, in all children for confirmation of ear disease, if any. Descriptive data analysis was performed. Results Out of the total 430 study subjects, ear morbidities were found in 198 (46.0%) study participants. Presence of ear morbidity showed significant association with overcrowding, absence of a separate kitchen, passive smoking, feeding young child in lying down position, upper respiratory tract infection (URI)˃3 episodes/year and allergy (p<0.05). Conclusions This study has highlighted the need to detect ear diseases at the earliest thereby avoiding complications. The health examination in the schools must include screening students for ear diseases to reduce the burden of hearing disability. Inputs from the study may be used for effective prioritization and planning for prevention and management of ear diseases at the primary school level.

Otitis media with effusion in relation to socio economic status: a community based study

Otitis media with effusion (OME) is the presence of non purulent effusion within the middle ear cleft. The symptoms of this disease are not alarming as in suppurative otitis media. The disease is common in young children. The main symptom of this disease is decreased hearing, which may sometime go unnoticed more so if the parents are not attentive. We conducted a community based study among 1,020 school children of the age group 5-10 years from schools of sub-urban areas of Dakshina Kannada district, Karnataka, to explore the relationship of OME in relation to socioeconomic status. Diagnosis of OME was done by clinical examination and tympanometry. Prevalence of OME was 4.5%. Out of 46 cases, 4% belong to upper class, 26% to upper middle class, 26% to lower middle class, 43% to upper lower class.