Non-Surgical Treatment of Otitis Media with Effusion in Children: Efficacy of Middle Ear Inflation with a Politzerization Device*

2009 
Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of politzerization in the treatment of otitis media with effusion (OME) and to investigate the continuity of this efficacy. Materials and Methods: Children who met the criteria for grommet ventilation tube insertion for OME were evaluated in this study. Politzerization was performed once a week for four weeks with a handheld device. Audiological evaluations were done before and after all treatment sessions and one week and two months after the completion of treatment. Results: There were 30 children in either of the study and control groups. Tympanometric peak pressure levels were improved in 57% of the study group and resolution of the averages of air-bone gaps to near-normal limits was noted in the half of these patients one week after four-week treatment. Two months later, overall improvement rate dropped to 32% in both of the outcome measures. Conclusions: Once a week middle ear inflation over a 4-week period was efficacious in the treatment of OME in the shortterm but it did not provide satisfactory long-term benefits. Autoinflation may avoid the need for drugs or surgery for middle ear effusion and it may be considered as an alternative to the other choices of treatment of OME. However, further efficacy studies investigating the ideal frequency of application of Politzerization and optimal duration of this conservative treatment are required.
    • Correction
    • Cite
    • Save
    • Machine Reading By IdeaReader
    12
    References
    3
    Citations
    NaN
    KQI
    []