A new study by HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration indicates that African American children with frequent ear infections (FEI) were less likely than white children to get specialized medical care or surgery, even when they had health insurance and regular care.

“It’s our agency’s mission to work toward eliminating disparities in health care,” said HRSA Administrator Elizabeth M. Duke, Ph.D.  “Research like this helps clarify where we stand in achieving this goal and how far we have yet to go.”

“Black-White Differences in Health Care Utilization among U.S. Children with Frequent Ear Infections,” by first author Christina Park, Ph.D., HRSA’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau, was published in May’s Pediatrics .

The study analyzed data collected on 1,985 children, part of an overall 25,497 children under age 18 who participated in a national health interview survey.  Parents or guardians reported these children to have had “three or more ear infections during the past 12 months.”

Findings indicate:

·        Among white and black children in this age group, 8.0 percent of the white children and
6.6 percent of the black children had frequent ear infections in the past year.

·        Black children with FEI were as likely as white children to be insured and have a usual source of care, but were predominantly covered by public health insurance (58 percent), mainly Medicaid.  Most white children had private health insurance (65 percent).

·        After accounting for factors such as health insurance and usual source of care, black children with FEI were about half as likely to see a medical specialist.  They were less than half as likely to undergo surgery compared to white children with FEI and more than twice as likely to have medical care delayed due to transportation problems.

Ear infection, otitis media, is the most common childhood bacterial infection in the U.S.  FEI are especially troublesome because of possible long-term consequences for children in speech and language development.  Due to the prevalence of otitis media, researchers say the gap in treatment of children with FEI should be understood in light of findings related to seeing medical specialists, specific medical interventions, and transportation problems.

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