Publication:

Bacteriological study of discharging ear in patients attending a tertiary care hospital

Ear infections occur in all age groups. Chronic Suppurative Otitis Media (CSOM) is the most common illness in ENT practice. It may even cause hearing impairment especially sensory – neural deafness if not treated properly and with caution. The study was undertaken to know the aerobic microbiological/bacteriological profile of ear discharge and variations in sensitivity pattern to treat the patients efficiently. A total of 71 patients who had discharging ear infection were included in this study. The most common microorganisms isolated were Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus followed by Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci (CoNS), Klebsiella spp, Proteus spp and Escherichia coli. Among the commonly used topical antibiotics, Ciprofloxacin appear to be first line antibiotic (91.52% sensitive) to treat CSOM followed by Gentamycin (89.6% sensitive). However, the action of Chloramphenicol was low (59.53% sensitive). Ofloxacin can be used to treat CSOM due to Staphylococcus aureus other than Ciprofloxacin and Gentamycin.