Adult Onset Otitis Media with effusion: Prevalence and Etiology

Otitis media with effusion (OME) is a subtype of chronic otitis media. It is a common disease in children but may occur in adults due to various reasons.
To determine the prevalence of pathological findings related to OME in adults.
This descriptive study was carried out in Otolaryngology department of Loghman Hakim hospital, Tehran, Iran, from March to August 2015. Thirty-one patients between 18-65 years old with symptomatic OME were selected. The underlying cause of OME was investigated using examination, audiometry test, endoscopy and biopsy.
Thirteen patients (41.9%) had allergy, 35.4%patients had gastro esophageal reflux. Fourteen cases (45.2%) had nasopharyngeal mass which almost 9% of patients were found neoplasm.
Adult onset OME can be an indicator of nasopharyngeal cancer and should be noticed as well as systematic approach in diagnostic procedure. However it is a clue for further studies to find out causal association in future.