BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Otitis externa in children is defined as the inflammation of the external ear canal and it is a common clinical issue in general medicine. This study aimed to determine the main causes of otitis externa in children in Babol, Iran.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 56 children diagnosed with otitis externa referring to the Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) Clinic of Rohani Hospital of Babol, Iran. Demographic data of the subjects including age, gender and duration of symptoms were recorded, and earwax was removed using a speculum. Afterwards, the obtained samples were evaluated microscopically, and were partly inoculated on media such as chocolate agar, blood agar and Sabouraud dextrose agar with Chloramphenicol. Eventually, the effective organisms were detected using different laboratory methods.

FINDINGS: : In this study, the most frequent symptoms of ear infection among children were inflation (76.8%) and secretion (75%), while the most common clinical manifestations were inflation of channel (82.1%) and secretion (69.6 %), respectively. Moreover, direct observation of the studied patients indicated bacteria as the most frequent organisms (42.9%). The most commonly isolated bacteria included Bacillus, coagulase-negative Staphylococci and Streptococci, while the most frequent fungi were Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus and Candida albicans.

CONCLUSION: According to the results of this study, otitis externa in children could be caused by fungi, bacteria or the combination of both these organisms