How early childhood middle ear infections affect hearing and listening development
Functional Consequences of Early Childhood Otitis Media
Following young children who had early middle ear infections to track how their hearing and listening skills change over time.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Texas at Austin NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Austin, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11164590 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If your child had ear infections as a baby or toddler, researchers will follow them over several years to see how listening and hearing skills develop after the infections are gone. They'll use child-friendly tests and games to measure spatial listening, how well your child hears in noisy places, sensitivity to subtle pitch changes, and detection of brief gaps in sounds. The team will also collect standard hearing tests and simple measures of thinking and communication and will use machine learning to map each child's recovery or lingering difficulties. Repeated visits will let the researchers track each child's progress over time.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are young children (infants through about 11 years) who had early-life otitis media (middle ear infections), especially those whose infections have since resolved.
Not a fit: Children without a history of early ear infections, adults, or those whose hearing loss is permanent from other causes may not get direct benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could help doctors spot children at risk of lasting listening problems and guide earlier support or therapies.
How similar studies have performed: Previous research is mostly cross-sectional and limited, so long-term tracking like this is relatively new and aims to fill that gap.
Where this research is happening
Austin, United States
- University of Texas at Austin — Austin, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Mishra, Srikanta — University of Texas at Austin
- Study coordinator: Mishra, Srikanta
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.