Paediatric post-grommets surgery review: Audiology-led clinic.

Background: Otitis media (OM) has a high prevalence in childhood, and grommet insertion is the most common surgical treatment for OM. The public health system in Australia faces considerable strains, including high demand for Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialists. Extending the scope of practice for audiologists to manage post-operative care for children receiving grommets has the potential to alleviate this burden.

The Impact of Waiting Times on Behavioral Outcomes for Children with Otitis Media: Results from an Urban Ear, Nose, and Throat Telehealth Service.

Aim: Children with otitis media (OM) experience long waiting times to access Australia's public hospitals due to limited capacity. The aim of this article is to utilize an Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) telehealth service (the Ear Portal) to examine whether delayed access to specialist care is associated with poorer behavioral outcomes for children with OM.

Methods: Participants in the study included 45 children who were referred to ENT specialists due to recurrent and persistent OM.

Ear and hearing outcomes in Aboriginal infants living in an urban Australian area: the birth cohort study.

Objective: Describe the ear and hearing outcomes in Aboriginal infants in an Australian urban area.

Design: Aboriginal infants enrolled in the prospective cohort study had ear health screenings at ages 2-4, 6-8 and 12-18 months and audiological assessment at ∼12 months of age. Sociodemographic, environmental characteristics, otoscopy, otoacoustic emissions, tympanometry and visual reinforcement audiometry data were collected.

The Impact of Early-Life Recurrent Otitis Media in Children on the Psychological Well-Being of Caregivers.

Aim: Children with early-life recurrent otitis media (OM) will often endure pain, sleep disturbances, and other developmental setbacks that impact the surrounding family system. The aim of this study was to investigate the psychological well-being and family functioning of caregivers of children with early-life recurrent OM (rOM).

Methods: Data from a longitudinal pregnancy cohort were used to categorize children into two groups: those with a history of recurrent OM (rOM group) and those without a history of rOM (reference group) by the age of 3 years.

The association between otitis media in early childhood with later behaviour and attention problems: A longitudinal pregnancy cohort.

Objectives: The present study aims to investigate the association between an early history of recurrent otitis media (OM) with or without ventilation tube insertion (VTI) and later behavioural problems in childhood and adolescence.

Methods: Parental reports in a longitudinal pregnancy cohort were used to classify children into three groups; recurrent OM without VTI (rOM group; n = 276), recurrent OM with VTI (VTI group; n = 62), and no history of early-life recurrent OM as a reference group (n = 1485). The Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) was administered at ages 5, 8, 10, and 13 years and data were analysed for psychological wellbeing.

Long-term follow-up after recurrent otitis media and ventilation tube insertion: Hearing outcomes and middle-ear health at six years of age.

Objectives: To investigate the long-term impact of recurrent otitis media (rOM) and ventilation tube insertion (VTI) in early childhood on hearing outcomes and middle-ear health three to five years later, in a prospective pregnancy cohort study.

Methods: Children were classified into rOM (n = 314), VTI (n = 94), and reference (n = 1735) groups, according to their otitis media (OM) history in their first three years of life. Audiometry at frequencies 500 Hz, 1000 Hz, 2000 Hz, and 4000 Hz, and tympanometry were performed when children were approximately six years of age.