Gruber M, Damry D, Ibrahim N, et al. - By performing this retrospective observational analytical case-based study, researchers analyzed pediatric cases (under the age of 18 years) of acute otitis externa (AOE) presented to a pediatric emergency department. Overall 337 patients were analyzed, about half of the visits presented during the summer months. Two subgroups (hospitalized and non-hospitalized) were defined. Higher rates of failed therapy, and higher rates of external ear canal edema, systemic fever, canal discharge and auricular edema were noted in the hospitalized sub-group. In 78% of cultures in the hospitalized sub-group, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) was isolated. In multivariable analysis, auricular edema, otorrhea, narrowing of the ear canal by more than 50%, fever, and previous systemic treatment were revealed as the variables having the strongest correlation for hospital admission. Overall, the main clinical variables which may be predictive of hospitalization in children suffering from AOE were revealed in this study, and sensitive strains of PA were shown to have a dominant role in the pathogenesis of this condition in children.