# Functional Consequences of Early Childhood Otitis Media

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · 2024 · $586,022

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ ABSTRACT
 Auditory deprivation during childhood has serious consequences on all aspects of development.
Otitis media (OM) is a highly prevalent condition in young children. It is principally important to examine
the relationship between OM, hearing loss, and listening development to understand the functional
sequelae of OM. Currently, it is difficult to ascertain the link between early childhood OM and
developmental alterations in perception and listening because the available evidence is limited and is
based on cross-sectional studies. The overarching goal of this project is to understand the residual
effects of early childhood OM on functional listening development. In Aim 1, we will examine the effects
of OM on the development of spatial listening skills after the OM is resolved. We will also examine the
effect of resolved OM on the development of energetic and informational masking. In Aim 2, we will
measure the sensitivity to frequency modulation and temporal gap detection to track the residual
developmental effects of OM on basic auditory perceptual skills. In Aim 3, we will profile listening and
communication abilities, and model listening development to define its trajectory following resolved OM
in relationship to several predictors (e.g., OM history, hearing, cognition, etc.) using machine learning.
In our approach, we will follow young children individually, with responses recorded longitudinally on
experimental measures, and routinely document the middle ear status. The proposed work combines
laboratory-based and real-world measures and carefully considers auditory, cognitive,
language/literacy, and other factors for measuring functional listening skills comprehensively. Since
listening is critical for language and learning in the classroom, the outcomes of this proposal
are essential to understand the residual effects of OM on childhood development. This will improve our
scientific and clinical knowledge about the developmental effects of OM, influencing the fields of
audiology, pediatrics, speech-language pathology, otolaryngology, neuroscience, and early
intervention.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10858990
- **Project number:** 1R01DC021702-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
- **Principal Investigator:** Srikanta Mishra
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $586,022
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-08-08 → 2029-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10858990

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10858990, Functional Consequences of Early Childhood Otitis Media (1R01DC021702-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-12 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10858990. Licensed CC0.

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