Frequency of various microorganisms causing Chronic Suppurative Otitis Media (CSOM): A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Aim: To determine the frequency of various microorganisms causing Chronic suppurative otitis media.

Study design: A cross-sectional study

Place and duration : This study was conducted at, Liaquat College of Medicine & Dentistry Karachi, Pakistan from January 2020 to January 2021.

Methodology: In the study, 230 patients, suffering from CSOM with bilateral or unilateral ear discharge, were observed. The patients under observation had ear discharge for more than three months. Patients who had received antibiotics at presentation, had ear discharge for less than three months, orhad anintact tympanic membrane were not included in the study. To extract the middle ear microflora, we used cotton buds. It was harvested from the tympanic membrane perforation through the aural speculum. The swabs containing pus were cultured on chocolate agar, McKay’s agar, and blood agar. This was then incubated for 24 to 48 hours at a temperature of 37◦C. To identify fungal species, the isolated fungi were sub-cultured on sabouraud’s dextrose agar. The analysis of data was done using frequencies and percentages.

Results: In this study, 230 patients were observed. The mean age of patients was 34 years, from the range of 6 to 59 years. Most patients belonged to the <10 years-age groups. A total of 105 patients were male while 125 were female. The ratio between male and female patients was 1:1.2. The left ear was involved in 100 cases while the right ear was involved in 116 patients and 14 patients involved both ears. Staphylococcus aureus 75 (32.60%) was the most frequently isolated microorganism. The second-most frequently isolated microorganism was Pseudomonas aeruginosa 61 (26.52%).

Conclusion: CSOM’s microbiological flora pattern varies due to changes in the community, inadvertent use of antibiotics, patient population, and climate. Hence, it is of the utmost importance to identify all the microorganisms so that the doctors can give their patients the right antibiotics.