The purpose of this multidisciplinary guideline is to identify quality improvement opportunities in managing OME and to create explicit and actionable recommendations to implement these opportunities in clinical practice.

Specifically, the goals are to improve diagnostic accuracy, identify children who are most susceptible to developmental sequelae from OME , and educate clinicians and patients regarding the favorable natural history of most OME and the lack of clinical benefits for medical therapy (eg, steroids, antihistamines, decongestants). Additional goals relate to OME surveillance, hearing and language evaluation, and management of OME detected by newborn screening.

The target audience

The guideline is intended for all clinicians who are likely to diagnose and manage children with OME, and it applies to any setting in which OME would be identified, monitored, or managed..