[Grommets (ventilation tubes) for recurrent acute otitis media in children--assessment of a Cochrane review].

A recently published Cochrane review on grommets (ventilation tubes) for recurrent acute otitis media in children included only two studies involving 148 children. The review showed that ventilation tube insertion led to a mean reduction of approximately one episode of acute otitis media in the first six months after treatment. We examined three excluded studies and found that their results were comparable even if all five studies had different designs. Clinicians should consider the possible adverse effects of grommet insertion before performing the surgery.