The Common Microbial Causes of Otitis Media with Especial Focus in Saudi Arabia

Otitis media is one of the common medical issues, which frequently faced by pediatricians. All most round 80% of children are probably experience one or more episodes of otitis media before school age. Many etiological factors have been incriminated to the etiology of Acute Otitis Media (AOM). Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis, Staphylococcus aureus, S. pyogenesare the most common organisms associated with AOM. AOM may happens as a complication of viral upper respiratory tract infection (URI). Although the prevalence rates of OM is gradually decreasing in Saudi Arabia, but still there is a gap regarding the different causes of otitis media, which has high geographical variation. This review discussed the most common microbial agents associated with otitis media with the main focus on: viral and bacterial etiological factors. This review aimed to review the literature regarding the different etiological factors associated with otitis media with especial stress on literature reported from Saudi Arabia in order to help in designing future otitis media prevention and control strategies in Saudi Arabia.