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The study examined the relatipnship in 44 1 ( preschoolers (considered to have varying degrees of predicted risk for poor school performance) between otitis media (middle ear disease) during the first 3 years of life and speech production (articulation) during preschool and school age years. Speech ti production accuracy was assessed by thenumber of consonant errors in,k nprds an&sentences, intelligibility of speech, and the Diaprasegmental features used during conversational speech. Transcriptions were typed, stored, and analyzed via computer. The total duration of bilateral and unilateral otitis media during the first 3 years of life ranged from 4 to 884 days; the total duration of bilateral or unilateral otitis media ranged from 8 to 937 days. Preliminary. speech analysis revealed that the otitis media durations were correlated with two specific types of speech errors: final sounds at age 3 and vbicing at age 5. Otitis media durations were no