Antibiotic Use in Children with Otitis Media Increases Risk for Recurrence

Clinicians often prescribe antibiotics for treatment of uncomplicated acute otitis media (AOM) in children despite lack of evidence for improved outcomes. To examine the effects of antibiotic treatment on recurrence of AOM, investigators in the Netherlands surveyed parents of 240 children (age range, 6 months to 2 years) about 3 years after the children had participated in a multicenter, randomized, double-blind trial of amoxicillin (40 mg/kg/day in 3 doses) or placebo for treatment of AOM (JW Emerg Med Apr 1 2000). Seventy percent of parents returned questionnaires.

Parents reported at least one episode of AOM since the 6-month posttreatment follow-up visit significantly more often in the amoxicillin group than in the placebo group (63% vs. 43%). Even after adjustment for confounding factors, children in the amoxicillin group had 2.5 times the risk for recurrence. In sensitivity analysis among children who were not prescribed antibiotics during the 6 months after randomized treatment, the adjusted odds ratio for recurrence was 4.4. Ear, nose, and throat surgery was less likely in the amoxicillin group (21% vs. 30%). The authors note that wide confidence intervals limit interpretation of the results and caution that the findings cannot be generalized to children with underlying disease or who live in underresourced conditions.