No negative outcomes of childhood middle ear disease in adulthood.

Abstract

To test the hypothesis that childhood middle-ear disease may have disadvantageous long-term psychosocial consequences in adulthood. Prospective, longitudinal study of a general-population birth cohort. One thousand thirty-seven people born in 1972/73 were studied from birth to age 26 when 1,019 (96% of survivors) were followed up. Childhood otitis media was assessed, and effects of it have previously been observed in childhood and adolescence. We considered outcome measures that were plausible adult counterparts of the childhood constructs shown to be impaired by otitis media: socioeconomic status, employment status, educational outcomes, personality, mental health, antisocial and criminal behavior, and subjective ratings of personal health (SF-36). No outcome measure was predicted by severity of childhood otitis media. Adult psychological and socioeconomic outcomes are not related to childhood otitis media when appropriate treatment is available.