Acute Otitis Media in Children with Iron Deficiency Anemia | ||||
| Egyptian Journal of Ear, Nose, Throat and Allied Sciences | ||||
| Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript, Available Online from 31 July 2025 | ||||
| Document Type: Short communication | ||||
| DOI: 10.21608/ejentas.2025.371991.1835 | ||||
 View on SCiNiTO | ||||
| Author | ||||
Yassin Adnan Aladhab 
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| iraq, basrah | ||||
| Abstract | ||||
| Background: Acute otitis media (OM) is one of the most common inflammatory conditions in pediatric patients. Anemia is defined as a decrease in hemoglobin level and red cell volume compared to age-matched values. This study aimed to investigate the incidence of OM and its relationship with iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in children. Methods: A prospective clinical study was conducted in the Department of ENT outpatient clinic between 2022 and 2024 in 201 children aged ≤16 years complaining of acute ear infections. A detailed medical and surgical history was obtained, and a clinical examination was performed. Complete oto-rhino-laryngological examination was performed. Acute OM was diagnosed using otoscopy. Swabs from the ear for culture and sensitivity were assessed if the patient complained of ear discharge. Results: Regarding the symptoms reported by the children, (108, 53.7%) had crying, (172, 85.5%) had fever, (65, 32.3%) had otorrhea and (201, 100%) had otalgia. The OM frequency was once in 100(49.8%) children, twice to thrice in 61(30.3%), and more than thrice in 40(19.9%). The mean Hb concentration pre-treatment was 8.99±4.58 g/dL whereas post-treatment the it was 10.95±2.11 g/dL (p=0.049). The episodes of OM pre-treatment (6 months) was 2.11±0.99 and post-treatment was 0.36±0.22 (6 months) (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: IDA required correction in the pediatric age group presenting with OM. Treatment of IDA with iron supplementation is an essential step in reducing the occurrence of OM in children. These findings can be considered as supplementary information for the medical management of OM in pediatric patients. | ||||
| Keywords | ||||
| Acute otitis media; Iron deficiency anemia; Hemoglobin; Otoscopy | ||||
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