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Investigating the impact of early childhood ventilation tube insertion (VTI) on long-term language outcomes. 

One third of children require repeat ventilation tube insertion (VTI) for otitis media. Disease recurrence is associated with persistent middle ear bacterial biofilms. With demonstration that Dornase alfa (a DNase) disrupts middle ear effusion biofilms ex vivo, we identified potential for this as an anti-biofilm therapy to prevent repeat VTI. First, safety and tolerability needed to be measured.

To investigate the long-term effects of early-life recurrent otitis media (OM) and subsequent behavioural problems in children at the age of 10 years.

Developmental language disorder (DLD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental conditions. Due to variable rates of language growth in children under 5 years, the early identification of children with DLD is challenging. Early indicators are often outlined by speech pathology regulatory bodies and other developmental services as evidence to empower caregivers in the early identification of DLD.

Describe the ear and hearing outcomes in Aboriginal infants in an Australian urban area. Aboriginal infants enrolled in the Djaalinj Waakinj prospective cohort study had ear health screenings at ages 2-4, 6-8 and 12-18 months and audiological assessment at ∼12 months of age. Sociodemographic, environmental characteristics, otoscopy, otoacoustic emissions, tympanometry and visual reinforcement audiometry data were collected.

Streptococcus pneumoniae is a leading cause of pneumonia and meningitis worldwide. Many different serotypes co-circulate endemically in any one location. The extent and mechanisms of spread and vaccine-driven changes in fitness and antimicrobial resistance remain largely unquantified.

Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy are two of the most commonly performed ENT procedures in children, with over 500,000 cases performed annually in the United States. Whilst generally considered a safe and well-tolerated operation, it is not without its risks and complications including pain, nausea, anorexia and most importantly bleeding and post-tonsillectomy haemorrhage.

There is limited but consistent evidence that suggests prenatal factors, including maternal stress, may contribute to susceptibility for otitis media. We aimed to determine the effect of multiple life stress events during pregnancy on risk of acute and recurrent otitis media in offspring at three and five years of age. 

The Raine Study is a long-running study looking at the health and well-being of a group of Western Australian families for over 35 years. Participants are at the heart of the study, shaping its research direction and communication. While participants have previously contributed to research grant development, they had not been directly involved in setting the Raine Study’s overall research agenda.

Otitis media (OM) is the leading cause of childhood hearing loss but its burden in low-middle-income countries like Papua New Guinea (PNG) is poorly understood. We aimed to determine the proportion of children aged ≤15 years attending clinics in Goroka, Eastern Highlands Province, PNG with OM and associated risk factors.