Otitis media in "water babies".

To examine the clinical impression that the incidence of otitis media in infant swimmers ("water babies") is higher than that in non-swimmers, we reviewed the records and interviewed the parents of 186 children under the age of four and one-half years seen in a suburban family practice. Sixty-five% (46/71) of swimmers as compared to 50% (58/115) of non-swimmers had been diagnosed as having at least one episode of otitis media. Although this difference was not statistically significant (p=0.055), this pilot study encouraged us to pursue further the possible association between otitis media and early-childhood swimming classes.