TY - JOUR T1 - Review: topical quinolones are better than systemic antibiotics for chronic suppurative otitis media at up to 2 weeks JF - Evidence Based Medicine JO - Evid Based Med SP - 151 LP - 151 DO - 10.1136/ebm.11.5.151 VL - 11 IS - 5 A2 - , Y1 - 2006/10/01 UR - http://ebm.bmj.com/content/11/5/151.abstract N2 - Macfadyen CA, Acuin JM, Gamble C. Systemic antibiotics versus topical treatments for chronically discharging ears with underlying eardrum perforations. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2006;(1):CD005608. 
 
 Q In patients with chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM), how do systemic antibiotics compare with topical antibiotics or antiseptics for ears with chronic discharge and eardrum perforations? Clinical impact ratings GP/FP/Primary care ★★★★★★☆ Paediatrics★★★★★★☆ Infectious disease ★★★★★★☆ Data sources: Cochrane ENT Disorders Groups Specialised Register, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Medline, 9 other databases, conference abstracts, and bibliographies of relevant studies. Study selection and assessment: randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in any language that compared topical and systemic treatments in patients with CSOM. Studies with steroid treatments were excluded. 9 RCTs (n = 833, age range 6–83 y) met the selection criteria but were of poor quality. Quality assessment was based on sequence generation, allocation concealment, blinding, and patient … ER -