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Pathogenesis of Chronic Otitis Media and the Continuum: The Basics, Further and Beyond

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Textbook of Otitis Media

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Abstract

Otitis media (OM) is defined as an inflammatory process in the middle ear cleft. It is one of the most prevalent infectious diseases being associated with an immense social impact worldwide 1. The morbidity (and even mortality) of this condition still poses a formidable challenge to otolaryngologists, pediatricians, and generalists.

Due to its immense social impact, otitis media has been exhaustively studied, but even so, a consensus on its complete understanding is far from being achieved. Pending questions remain regarding the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and treatment of this condition. Even the classification and definition of otitis media among its different subgroups is very controversial.

The objective of this chapter is to review concepts related to the pathogenesis of this prevalent disease with special emphasis on the continuum theory that rejects the independence between the various phases of otitis media and introduces the idea that they are all part of a continuous process of epithelial and subepithelial alterations that develop and follow from an initial trigger.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, School of Medicine-Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil

    Sady Selaimen da Costa

  2. International Hearing Foundation, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Sady Selaimen da Costa

  3. American Academy of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery, Alexandria, VA, USA

    Sady Selaimen da Costa & Michael M. Paparella

  4. Department of Otolaryngology, University of Minnesota, Otopathology Laboratory, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Sady Selaimen da Costa & Michael M. Paparella

Authors
  1. Sady Selaimen da Costa
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  2. Michael M. Paparella
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology, Clínica Universidad de Los Andes, Santiago, Chile, USA

    Marcos V. Goycoolea

  2. Otolaryngology, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Sady Selaimen da Costa

  3. Department of Otolaryngology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

    Chris de Souza

  4. Paparella Ear Head & Neck Institute, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Michael M. Paparella

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da Costa, S.S., Paparella, M.M. (2023). Pathogenesis of Chronic Otitis Media and the Continuum: The Basics, Further and Beyond. In: Goycoolea, M.V., Selaimen da Costa, S., de Souza, C., Paparella, M.M. (eds) Textbook of Otitis Media. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-40949-3_37

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-40949-3_37

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-40948-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-40949-3

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