Clinical and bacteriological study on acute otitis media due toTuricella otitidis

Background:Turicella otitidis is a Gram-positive bacillus recently recognized as a possible cause of acute otitis media (AOM) in pediatric patients. Little is known about the clinical and microbiological characteristics of T. otitidis AOM. Method:Retrospective medical-chart study of consecutiveT. otitidis AOMcases seen at a teaching hospital in Paris, from January 2000 to August 2003. Results: We identified 65 T. otitidis-positive pediatric cases of AOM (44 boys and 21 girls, mean age 30 months). Both ears were affected in 24 patients. A protracted course with antimicrobial therapy before microbiological sampling was noted in 11 patients including 4 with incipient mastoiditis. Spontaneous drainage occurred in 19 (29%) patients including one with a grommet. In 19 other patients, a second organism was found (Streptococcus pneumoniae,Haemophilus influenzae, or Staphylococcus aureus). Susceptibility of T. otitidisto penicillin was excellent in 62 patients. Amoxicillin with clavulanic acid was the most widely used first-line treatment (29 patients). Of the 35 patients with outcome data, 34 achieved a full recovery and 1 experienced persistent drainage. Conclusion:T. otitidisis a pathogenic bacteria found at all ages and responsible for variable clinical aspects. Widely used antimicrobials were usually effective in this series. ( Fr ORL - 2005 ; 88 : 104 - 107) (Presented in 2004 at the 111th meeting of SFORL as a poster)