Retrospective study of pediatric mastoiditis in a tertiary hospital: the microbiology spectrum and antibiotic treatment.

PURPOSE: Describe the clinical and demographic characteristics of acute mastoiditis (AM) with the aim of identifying its etiology, assessing the incidence of Pseudomona according to the sampling collection method, and evaluating the clinical response to empiric antibiotic treatments. METHODS: Retrospective descriptive study from January 2015 to July 2024, included patients under 18 years of age with a diagnosis of AM admitted to the Jiménez Díaz Foundation University Hospital. RESULTS: 41 cases included (58.5% females). 95.1% presented detachment of the auricle, 87.8% retroauricular erythema and 56.1% fever. The diagnosis was clinical in 38 patients. 9 presented complications. No differences observed in the incidence of complications between the patients under 2 years of age and older than 2 years (p= 0.819). All received intravenous antibiotic therapy, 85.4% Cefotaxime. Microbiological analyses were performed in 17 patients. 7 were obtained through drainage of external auditory canal (EAC). Pathogens identified were Streptococcus pneumoniae, mixed flora and Pseudomona aeruginosa in 2 cases. CONCLUSION: Acute mastoiditis remains a significant and prevalent pathology in our institution. Microbiological findings based on the sample collection method could not be analyzed. Furthermore, our study emphasizes the diagnostic limitations of middle ear cultures when sampling is performed after the initiation of antimicrobial therapy.