Does Steroid Treatment Benefit Kids with Middle-Ear Effusions?

Otitis media is the most common pediatric infection. After symptoms resolve, affected children frequently have middle-ear fluid (effusion), resulting in some temporary loss of hearing. The benefit of treating effusion, whether with antibiotics, decongestants, or anti-inflammatory medications, has been controversial. To identify possible benefits of systemic steroids, these researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind study from mid-1994 to mid-1999 of 144 children 1 to 9 years old with effusion for ≥2 months and compared antibiotic treatment with and without 2-week treatment with prednisone, 1 mg/kg/day. All children received amoxicillin, half of them for 2 weeks and half for 4. Hearing tests and ear examinations were performed at basel…