Is tonsil and adenoid surgery the right thing to do?

Question

My son is 3 and over the past month has had problems with extremely enlarged tonsils. They seem to be ok right now because they are not obstructing like they were a few weeks ago but they are still huge. He snores and it sounds like he has a hard time breathing at night sometimes. He also has a problem with choking on his food occasionally. His doctor said we can go either way -treat conservatively or take them out. I have scheduled the surgery but I am second guessing myself because his problems are not severe. Is it better just to get it over with?

Answer 1

The best thing that I ever did was have my tonsils and adenoids removed when I was in high school. Growing up I was always sick, could never do sleepovers, had trouble breathing, and had difficulty eating. I would suggest getting it done when your son is younger because if it is affecting him that badly now then it will only get worse as he gets older. Without the surgery you'll be spending a lot of time at the doctors office and having your son on medication. I'm now immune to amoxicillin because I was on it so much! Life without adenoids and tonsils is great! I breathe easy (don't snore anymore) and rarely get sick (and if I do it only lasts a day).

If you're worried about putting your 3-year-old through surgery just wait a few years until he's a little older, but definitely get it done! I was in the hospital 2 days and the first night sucked but now things are great and I've had no adverse problems because of the surgery.

Answer 2

In my husband's time (early 60s) EVERYBODY got their tonsils out, much like now, when everybody gets their wisdom teeth out. It was just one of those things every child had done. We don't have a whole generation of super healthy or super sick people because everyone got their tonsils out.

Your son's enlarged tonsils are going to continue to get infected several times a year. They are causing him to snore, and may interrupt his breathing at night. Kids who have interrupted sleep are often grouchy and uncooperative during the day...wouldn't you be? This may even lead to disciplinary problems. And he can't tell you that he's running on half a tank.

Conservatively, some parents don't want to throw away organs in their kids' bodies that had a purpose for being there. Maybe, they think, there's an alternative method to shrinking the size of the tonsils. Did your dr. suggest anything?

Personally, I don't see how you can think (or say) that your child's symptoms are not severe. How many cases of tonsillitis has he had? How many nights of interrupted sleep? Have you been trained in the heimlich maneuver?

It's a no-brainer to me. Take the tonsils out so your kid can breathe normally again.

TX Mom

Answer 3

My twins had their tonsils removed Nov 06 at 5yrs old. Since they were 3mths old they suffered from severe tonsilitis, which caused febrile convulsions. One twin was "ok" and would just get cranky, not eat and miserable for a few days. The other twin would hit rock bottom, refuse food & fluids, be basicly half awake most the day crying the rest.

We also had issues of refusing foods, choking and miserable nights sleep. Thankfully we didn't have sleep apnoea which it sounds like your son has. (airway is obstructed during sleep). which can result in stunted growth, irratability.

Tonsils are useful but gross items. When I read what their "job" is I almost threw up (and this is from a student nurse who gets a stool to watch up close in surgeries!!)
My girls had their surgery at 4pm and were sent home at 10am the next day. They only took their tonsils as their adenoids were normal size and hadn't been causing them any issues.

My girls tonsils were each the size of a golf ball (imagine havng two golf balls in your throat no wonder they were fussy eaters). You could only see a sliver of space in their throats before surgery afterwards there is sooooo much more room. My girls health has improved greatly since having them out I'm very very happy with having the surgery done.

Something to consider is asking the surgeon if they allow parents to go with the child to theatre. I was allowed to carry the girls in and talk and stay with them while they were put under (it was also my choice as to which way they were put under, gas or needle). I was also allowed to sleep there the night between the girls, I didn't get much sleep but it was good to be there for them.

Here they encourage solid foods 6hrs after surgery. My girls first meal was spagetti on toast and cocopops. They encourage normal diet as it helps to clear the tonsil bed which helps prevent infection.

The most critical time is 14days after surgery when the scab/crust can come off the tonsil bed. This is the most common time for "bleeds" to occur. One of my girls was fine & didn't have any bleeding. the other had about a 4inch blood stain on the pillow the morning of day 14. Make sure you can have two weeks off work or have someone you trust greatly to mind your son till past this stage.

Bleeds are common and generally nothing to worry about but in a small amount of cases it can be life threatening (not meaning to worry you but best to be honest and tell you everything). Think of it like a skinned knee, as it heals and the scab comes off sometimes you have a bit of a bleed. This is similar but in the throat.

I don't regret getting my girls done, and if I could I would have done it sooner (we were waiting on our public health system to have it done for free but went private and cost just under $1500 for both of them).

Answer 4

Just get them removed, it's a routine op & can be more dangerous if it's done in adulthood (not sure why).
You don't need them anyway & he'll be a lot more comfortable.

Chances are he won't even remember it when he gets older.

I suffered for years with my tonsils & didn't have them removed until I was 19, wish they had been taken out when I was young.