Question for those whose kids have had tonsil or adenoid problems

[fartingfran]

DS is nearly 4 and has never slept well. Long story but we eventually discovered that his tonsils and adenoids are massive and impeding his breathing as he sleeps.

We've just had a date through for surgery in 3 weeks time. The thing is, in the last fortnight he's probably slept through or as good as (ie woken for the day between 4 and 6) maybe 8 or 9 times. That's incredible for him. And although he's still tired during the day and I often have to enforce a nap, he's probably not as exhausted.

So what do I do? It's the first time he's had no sign of a cough or cold for months, and while I really don't want him to have unnecessary surgery, I don't want to cancel it if he's going to go back to square one as soon as he picks up a bug. His tonsils still appear huge, he still sweats and breathes noisily at night, so I'm thinking do it anyway. But I'm wibbling!

If they're still massive but he's otherwise well, I'd definitely go for it tbh. DD had the op aged 2 and they also discovered she had glue ear as well which hadn't been picked up before. The first few nights back after surgery, we had to keep checking her because her breathing was sooo quiet compared to before the op.

Good luck whatever you decide

Hi fran My ds1 had the op just after he turned 3. I'd been pushing for it for just over a year.
He had been constantly snotty since the day he was born, always seemed to have some kind of bug, his breathing stopped when he was sleeping and the amount od AB's he had taken in his short life was crazy.
Now, 8 months on, he is fine. He sleeps through, he hasn't had so much as a cough and he is eating better.

personally I'd say do it. I think she'd cope better with the discomfort after the op now than in a few years.
The sleep apnoea really frightened me too, so there was never any question about whether or not we'd go through with it.
HTH

My ds2 is now 5 and had his tonsils and adenoids removed last year for the same reason.

Like you I was extremely worried about having unnecessary surgery.

The op was fine, the recovery was difficult, the result is fantastic, he now sleeps completely quietly and wakes rested in the morning.

I had had real trouble getting him dry at night time, but within weeks after the op he was dry every night.

In his case I think the op was worthwhile.
Hope that helps.

Yes, you're helping. Thank you :)

I feel bad because I honestly didn't recognise that there was a problem. He'd never slept well and I just assumed that was how he was. I don't know why the snoring didn't actually register as a problem - and when I eventually took him to the GP to ask about it I was told it was highly unlikely to be a problem. Only after a month of rapid return and all the tears it brought :(, and the HV then making a call the the GP on our behalf, did we get a referral and an offer of surgery.

Having had no sleep for all this time, I know how run down and worn out I feel, so goodness knows how he feels when he's busy trying to grow and learn. In the meantime I've had another one so how long this sleepless hell will continue for is anyone's guess!

Glad to hear your kids have benefitted :)

Fran The snoring itself didn't register with me as a problem either, although I'd joke to people that it wasn't normal.
The thing that got it for me, was not long after ds1 turned 2, he got a water infection and was awful with it, so I was having him sleeping in bed with me which is when I noticed his breathing would stop a number of times for upto a minute and a half.
It was then I started requesting referrals for surgery. I could see myself his tonsils were huge. They pretty much touched!! You couldn't see past them.

I also had another baby when ds1 was 18 months, so do know how you feel. Send her for the op. She will be fine

my dd was 6 this week - her tonsils DO touch..they are massive and she snores, when she has a cold she also has the apnoea thing
her two elder sisters both had their tonsilds removed at age 3 for the same thing
our Gp and a consultant have both said her tonsils are not infected, they are large but should shrink by the time she is 7 and will not operate
i hope they do shrink as she wakes looking worn out sometimes

They don't touch but they are massive and lumpy and seem to extend right down his throat. He does wake up shattered sometimes and his behaviour is appalling as a result.

Thanks for the reassurance and experiences :)

My brother developed serious tonsilitis which persisted for over two years from around the age of 9. He became tired, listless and overweight. Before that he was a bright boy and passed the exam to go from state primary to a private prep school. Because of the illness, he missed loads of schooling and was always having to catch up with his class which was a struggle.

My parents' GP was very understanding and referred him to an NHS ENT consultant. It was many weeks of waiting for this appointment during which the consultant barely looked at him, asked about his time off school and said this wasn't enough to warrant taking out his tonsils.

Back at the GP's she sighed and said she disagreed with the consutant's opinion but then explained the NHS had set itself against taking out tonsils (as they have with circumcision!) They would only perform surgery in the most extreme situations after a long period of suffering. My parents only option was to pay and go privately for this operation. This they did and after a much shorter wait, were seen by an eminent surgeon. Before he even examined my brother he brusquely warned that he didn't take tonsils out on a whim to oblige parents who thought it the fashionable thing to do. He preferred to devote his skills to more life threatening throat surgery.

On examination, which was only a second or so, he turned to my parents and said firmly: "This boy needs to have his tonsils out! It's one of the worst cases I've seen!" End of appointment, even shorter than the NHS.

The surgery was performed a week later. My brother was eleven. All went well until a week later when he had a serious haemorrhage. This cleared up until another week later when he haemorrhaged again and had to be rushed into hospital and have a transfusion. He survived this frightening experience after which he never looked back. He lost his puppy fat, grew and regained his energy and did well at school and university with no more tonsil trouble ever. He is now in his forties, 6pt 4in and managing a public company.

Sorry for this long tale Fran but it makes two points.

If you've been offered surgery, go for it, your son's condition must be bad enough to need it. They don't take out tonsils otherwise.

The longer you leave it the worse it can be. Ask anyone who has had an adult tonsillectomy. Your son is only 4 and although it won't be a happy experience it will be a lot less severe than it was for my brother. Good luck!

Thanks Suzanne. We're definitely going for it. Just wait, he'll get a cold 3 days beforehand now!

SilveryMoon - did the op help with the snotty nose??? My DS (5) is exactly the same and finally have got GP to refer me rather than say he'll grow out of it. The conclusion after referral was that he needed to have the extremely large adenoids and tonsils removed. We're waiting on a date for the op and whilst I'm happy for him to go through with it because we've no other solution, I'd be delighted to have someone tell me it actually stopped the runny nose.

It did indeed stop the snotty nose. Instantly. He just now gets the normal amount of snot when there's extreme weather chances etc

The reason they try and avoid taking tonsils out is that during your teens your tonsils naturally start to atrophy so most problems go away by themselves. Saying that though if problems are that serious at such a young age you're probably better off having them removed.

Also in response to Suzannesee's comment about her brother. I had the exact same thing. Tonsils out, all was fine, then 4 separate haemorrages occurred, whizzed back into a&e, blood transfusions, etc. Finally solved when they cauterised the back of my throat with nasty chemicals!
However, this used to happen a lot more as doctor's used to cut the tonsils out which obviously leaves a raw wound. I believe they now tend to use a laser which cauterises the wound at the time so this type of after effect is pretty rare.