Tonsillectomy and Adenoidectomy 2YO

[Mummabo1993]

My Little girl (2.4) is due for a pre op assessment in a few weeks for a bilateral tonsillectomy snd adenoidectomy under the NHS due to breathing difficulties caused by her tonsils. Please can you share experiences including what things they look at/do during the pre op (I’ll be taking a list of questions with me), and how long you were waiting for a surgery date after the pre assessment?

We’re counting down the days as my daughter is constantly exhausted, uncomfortable (she has fluid in her ear due to the swelling) and poorly with some kind of cold or infection and I want to take it away from her :(

Do they do blood tests pre/post op? She’s non verbal with developmental delays and I’m hoping that she can have a better quality of life as the poor thing can’t tell us how she’s feeling. The reason I ask is in case the bloods could show any incidental findings that could also be causing her symptoms I.e anemia, circulation problems etc in addition to her tonsils and adenoids being enlarged

I am also potentially due to have a c section in a few weeks time so wish me luck with dates! (And why I’m wondering when the surgery may be post pre assessment!) 🫣

It'll likely just be a bunch of questions re medical history/meds/family history etc, measuring weight +/- height, giving fasting instructions, bit of chat about what will happen on the day/what to bring etc. The pre-op nurse will then flag-up any issues that arise to the anaesthetists/surgeons in case they've not been spotted already. Sometimes the nurses chat a bit about the anaesthetic - it's not always that helpful though & I'd wait until you've seen the anaesthetist on the day to go through all of that. Some places do a tour of the ward so kids know what to expect...probably more useful for older children though. Some places introduce play therapists in pre-assessment. It'd be unusual to do bloods as routine. (doi: anaesthetist)

It was almost 10 years ago so I can't remember the pre-op details but my DS had the same op for the same reasons at about the same age (I also had a newborn) and it was the best thing we ever did for him. He gained so much weight and energy, his speech improved, he was happier and healthier and he grew loads! It made a huge difference. Are they planning to do grommets at the same time? Worth looking into if she has hearing problems. My DS was also prescribed an antibiotic for about 2 weeks in the run up to the OP which allowed him to breathe better and rest a little so he was ready for the general anaesthetic - they were worried that if he was struggling to breathe already they might have to move the op back again.

Just wanted to wish you best of luck with it all and I hope it had such an amazing effect for your little girl as it did for us. And good luck with the section too!