Efficacy of a non-invasive middle ear aeration device in children with recurrent otitis media: A randomized controlled trial protocol.

Abstract

Acute otitis media (AOM) represents a significant disease burden in the pediatric population. Besides vaccinations, there are no robust measures of reducing incidence of AOM in this age-group. This is a randomized controlled clinical trial evaluating the efficacy of a non-invasive middle ear aeration device, the EarPopper device (EP). We aim to investigate the reduction of episodes AOM in children with recurrent otitis media. The control arm will be observational. The intervention arm will have the EP used. The primary endpoint is incidence of AOM. The secondary endpoints are hazard ratio of time to AOM, proportion without AOM and antibiotics use, quality of life (OMO-22 Form), and adherence to treatment. Sample size is a minimum of 150 patients. The inclusion criteria is ages 4–11, with history of recurrent Acute Otitis Media (AOM).