Results of the study were dramatic. Parent satisfaction was equal in the two groups at both 12 days and 30 days after treatment. No difference was observed between the two groups in days of work or school missed, visits to doctors' offices or emergency rooms, or number of phone calls. There was no difference in the recurrence rate by day 30, and no difference in the clinical examination of the children's eardrums at day 30.

This study should finally prove that antibiotics are not necessary or beneficial in the management of nonsevere ear infections. Even when no treatment was utilized there was no significant difference in outcome.

Holistic pediatrics, by contrast, employs several forms of treatment that most practitioners would agree do have a significant impact on ear infections. Both homeopathic treatment and Chinese herbal medicine offer valid and safe forms of treatment. One double-blind clinical study did show that homeopathy is more effective than placebo in the treatment of acute ear infections. This was a preliminary study with a sample size of only 75 children, but the demonstration of the effectiveness of homeopathic treatment deserves recognition. There was a statistically significant reduction in symptoms after 24 hours with homeopathic treatment compared to the placebo group, and fewer treatment failures in the homeopathic group after 5 days, 2 weeks, and 6 weeks of follow-up. For example, after 5 days the rate of treatment failure in the homeopathic group was 19.4 percent compared to 30.8 percent in the control group. The authors of that study concluded that a follow-up study with a larger treatment group would be necessary to show statistically significant results.

References:

McCormick DP, et al. Nonsevere acute otitis media: a clinical trial comparing outcomes of watchful waiting versus immediate antibiotic treatment. Pediatrics June 2005; 115(6):1455.

Editor's Note:
With results like this, one should consider getting your child looked at by a Doctor of Chiropractic.  Please review an earlier post called "The Neurology of a Childhood Ear Infection."