• Home
  • Practice Focus
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
    • How I Do It
    • TRIO Best Practices
  • Business of Medicine
    • Health Policy
    • Legal Matters
    • Practice Management
    • Tech Talk
    • AI
  • Literature Reviews
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Career
    • Medical Education
    • Professional Development
    • Resident Focus
  • ENT Perspectives
    • ENT Expressions
    • Everyday Ethics
    • From TRIO
    • The Great Debate
    • Letter From the Editor
    • Rx: Wellness
    • The Voice
    • Viewpoint
  • TRIO Resources
    • Triological Society
    • The Laryngoscope
    • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
    • TRIO Combined Sections Meetings
    • COSM
    • Related Otolaryngology Events
  • Search

What is the Role of Tympanostomy Tubes in the Treatment of Recurrent Acute Otitis Media?

by Kenneth R. Whittemore, Jr., MD, MSD • November 4, 2014

  • Tweet
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
Print-Friendly Version

Trio Best PracticeBackground

Approximately 90% of children will experience at least one bout of acute otitis media (AOM). An infection will most commonly occur within the first two years of life, with the highest incidence between six to 12 months of age. Recurrent AOM (rAOM) is generally defined as a child having a minimum of three bouts of AOM in a six-month period or four bouts in one year. Treatment options for children with rAOM include episodic treatment with analgesics alone or antibiotics, prophylactic antibiotic therapy, or myringotomy with or without tympanostomy tube (TT) placement.

You Might Also Like

  • Single Visit Surgery an Appealing Option for Tympanostomy Tube Placement in Children with Recurrent Acute Otitis Media
  • Should Antibiotics Be Prescribed for Acute Otitis Media?
  • Ventilation Tubes in Otitis Media May Lower Quality of Life
  • Management of Acute Otitis Media in Cochlear Implant Recipients: To Tube or Not to Tube?
Explore This Issue
November 2014

Best Practice

The American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery’s guidelines recommend TT treatment in cases of rAOM. Currently, there is limited evidence to strongly support the use of TT over medical therapy for rAOM. Given that AOM is very common in children and that TT placement is also common, a large, randomized, controlled study is needed, as is suggested by the American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines for treatment of acute otitis media. Surgical intervention should be considered as second-line treatment if medical therapy fails. Alternatively, if a child with rAOM is very symptomatic, the use of TT may improve some quality-of-life parameters. Read the full article in The Laryngoscope.

Filed Under: Departments, Otology/Neurotology, Otology/Neurotology, Pediatric, Pediatric, Practice Focus, TRIO Best Practices Tagged With: otitis media, pediatrics, Tympanostomy TubesIssue: November 2014

You Might Also Like:

  • Single Visit Surgery an Appealing Option for Tympanostomy Tube Placement in Children with Recurrent Acute Otitis Media
  • Should Antibiotics Be Prescribed for Acute Otitis Media?
  • Ventilation Tubes in Otitis Media May Lower Quality of Life
  • Management of Acute Otitis Media in Cochlear Implant Recipients: To Tube or Not to Tube?

The Triological SocietyENTtoday is a publication of The Triological Society.

Polls

Do you use AI-powered scribes for documentation?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive

Top Articles for Residents

  • Applications Open for Resident Members of ENTtoday Edit Board
  • How To Provide Helpful Feedback To Residents
  • Call for Resident Bowl Questions
  • New Standardized Otolaryngology Curriculum Launching July 1 Should Be Valuable Resource For Physicians Around The World
  • Do Training Programs Give Otolaryngology Residents the Necessary Tools to Do Productive Research?
  • Popular this Week
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
    • How to: Positioning for Middle Cranial Fossa Repair of Superior Semicircular Canal Dehiscence

    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment

    • Rating Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Severity: How Do Two Common Instruments Compare?

    • Otolaryngologists Are Still Debating the Effectiveness of Tongue Tie Treatment

    • Endoscopic Ear Surgery: Advancements and Adoption Challenges 

    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment

    • Rating Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Severity: How Do Two Common Instruments Compare?

    • Is Middle Ear Pressure Affected by Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Use?

    • Otolaryngologists Are Still Debating the Effectiveness of Tongue Tie Treatment

    • Complications for When Physicians Change a Maiden Name

    • The Importance of Time Away
    • Endoscopic Ear Surgery: Advancements and Adoption Challenges 
    • Reflections from a Past President of the Triological Society
    • ENT Surgeons Explore the Benefits and Challenges of AI-Powered Scribes: Revolutionizing Documentation in Healthcare
    • How To: Open Expansion Laryngoplasty for Combined Glottic and Subglottic Stenosis

Follow Us

  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • The Triological Society
  • The Laryngoscope
  • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Cookies

Wiley

Copyright © 2025 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved, including rights for text and data mining and training of artificial technologies or similar technologies. ISSN 1559-4939