Etiological factors associated with chronic suppurative otitis media in a population of Han adults in China

Abstract

Objective: Risk factors for chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) were not clearly established. The study was to investigate the etiological factors for CSOM from a population of Han adults in China.

Methods: A case-control study was conducted at Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, School of Medicine in China. A total of 416 individuals participated in this study, which included 206 cases and 210 controls.

Results: Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed male (OR = 0.42; 95% CI: 0.21–0.83), BMI increasing (OR = 0.85; 95% CI: 0.77–0.93), URTI (OR = 152.85; 95% CI: 34.11–684.93), smoke/passive smoke (OR = 7.11; 95% CI: 3.36–15.07), residential location (urban area) (OR = 0.27; 95% CI: 0.13–0.56), serum calcium increasing (OR = 0.09; 95% CI: 0.01–0.71) were prime risk factors for CSOM. Univariate analysis revealed that low socioeconomic status (OR= 2.33; 95% CI: 1.57–3.45) and hepatitis B (OR = 4.90; 95% CI: 1.82–13.21) were risk factors together with the above variables.

Conclusion: This study has identified several variables as risk factors for CSOM, suggesting better healthcare, living condition, as well as better nutrition might decrease the development of CSOM. Further studies are necessary to assess the outcome of CSOM after interventions in the etiological factors.

Keywords:

• Suppurative otitis media
• risk factor
• case-control study

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Xiaohong Jing and Ye Yang from the Department of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery, Xi’an Jiaotong University for data collection during the study. They also thank all the participants who contributed to the study.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Funding information

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, China (No. 81541040). Shaanxi Major International Cooperative Project, China (No. 2013KW- 28).