Elsevier

The Lancet

Volume 323, Issue 8381, 14 April 1984, Pages 835-837
The Lancet

Public Health
SURGERY FOR GLUE EAR —A MODERN EPIDEMIC

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(84)92280-3Get rights and content

Abstract

Analysis of routine hospital statistics confirms anecdotal reports of an epidemic of surgery for glue ear. The surgical rate rose by 74% in Oxford Region between 1975 and 1981. The peak ages for surgery are 5-7 years, and the rates are higher in boys than in girls (1·4:1·00). The relative risk is high in social class I (1·16) and low in social class V (0·61). Although the prevalence of glue ear is hard to ascertain, the current surgical epidemic probably reflects an increase in apparent prevalence rather than a real increase in morbidity.

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