acute otitis media

:  infection of the middle ear that is of rapid onset and is marked by inflammation, earache, fever, decreased hearing, fluid in the middle ear, and sometimes rupture of the tympanic membrane ◆Acute otitis media is most common in infants and young children. It is caused by a bacterium or virus and typically occurs as a complication of an upper respiratory infection. … acute otitis media … is the most frequent childhood illness after the cold and the most common pediatric diagnosis for which antibiotics are prescribed.—Marianne Neifert, Baby Talk, December/January 2001—abbreviation AOM