A preliminary study of the effect of early middle ear pathology on auditory perceptual skills

Knowledge of the consequences of early middle ear effusion in children is severely limited. While scientific studies have delved into such areas as epidemiology, physiology, microbiology, and other topics in relation to middle ear disease, few are available that deal specifically with speech and language as related to auditory processing development. While there may seem to be a strong correlation between histories of chronic middle ear pathology and auditory processing disorders, such a conclusion is premature due to the lack of sound empirical evidence in support of such a standard. Criticism of experimental studies related to middle ear pathology centers around inadequate testing procedures and lack of experimental control. The purpose of this research was to compare two groups of children; one control group and one group known to have middle ear infections, when both groups were measured on a series of language, articulation, and psycholinguistic tests.