If my child has adenoid hypertrophy, should I have surgery?
Some time ago, the University of Science and Technology saw a news that a 5-year-old boy in Shenzhen was sent to the hospital while sleeping and snoring.
Image source: First Scene
It turned out that he was diagnosed with adenoid hypertrophy when he was 2 years old, and he was treated conservatively at that time, but now his condition has worsened and he has to undergo surgery.
Some parents may want to ask: Can adenoid hypertrophy heal on its own? Is it okay not to have surgery? What are the dangers of not having surgery?
Today, HKUST will talk about these 3 issues that everyone is most concerned about!
1
A small test that teaches you to quickly identify it!
Image source: Science Family Parenting Original
1
The child's mouth is open to breathe, and the risk of adenoid hypertrophy is (A)
A. High Risk
B. Low risk
Under normal physiological conditions, we breathe through the nose, and only when the nasal cavity is blocked, will we be forced to breathe through the mouth to achieve a normal state of oxygen supply, so when the child breathes through the mouth, there is a risk of adenoid hypertrophy!
02
Which of the following faces is an adenoid face? (B)
A. Left
B. Right
Image source: Science Family Parenting Original
If the baby breathes through the mouth for a long time, there will be an "adenoid face", as shown in the picture on the right above, with long jaw edges, high arched palatal bones, irregular teeth, protruding upper incisors, thick lips, and lack of expression. If this happens, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible.
03
How long does snoring and mouth breathing be adenoidal hypertrophy?(B)
A. Less than two weeks
B. More than two weeks
In general, if the symptoms of snoring and mouth breathing appear within two weeks, it may be caused by a cold, and if it is more than two weeks, there is a high risk of adenoid hypertrophy!
If you answer all the above 3 questions correctly, it means that you have been able to preliminarily judge the symptoms related to adenoid hypertrophy!
Parents who want to correctly judge adenoid hypertrophy 99.9% also need to memorize the following!
Image source: Science Family Parenting Original
If the baby is diagnosed with adenoid hypertrophy, whether surgery is needed must be the first concern of parents!
Let's talk about it.
Image source: Science Family Parenting Original
02
Should I undergo surgery for an enlarged adenoid?
If the baby does not have symptoms of snoring, mouth breathing, or hearing abnormalities, it can be temporarily left untreated and waiting for self-healing.
However, if you have mouth breathing, snoring, or hearing problems, it is best to treat them in time, and if you can do surgery early, you must do it as soon as possible!
Many children have severe adenoid hypertrophy and blockage, and doctors recommend surgery, but parents are worried that the surgery will cause other harm to the baby due to the risk of surgery!
(1) Let's talk about the situation when surgery is necessary:
●Associated with severe nasal obstruction.
●Moderate nasal congestion that has been obstructive (mouth breathing, obliterative nasal, or olfactory disturbances) for at least one year.
●Refractory to conservative treatment.
(2) Hazards of not having surgery:
If the best time for treatment is missed, surgery may not be necessary in many cases, but it will be more costly.
◆ Visible damage: Teeth are not aligned, and orthodontic teeth are required.
◆ Invisible injuries include: affecting attention, intelligence, sleep, and the child's growth is not high!
The best time for surgical removal of adenoid hypertrophy is 5-6 years old!
HKUST has also found some real cases of surgery, and I hope you can put down your nervousness and take the baby for treatment as soon as possible!
Did the parents want to take the baby for surgery immediately?
Let's talk about adenoid hypertrophy surgery, which is removed under general anesthesia, and the baby will not have an impact on intelligence and will not become stupid if he receives a general anesthesia.
Image source: Science Family Parenting Original
And now it is mostly endoscopic low-temperature plasma radiofrequency adenoidectomy, that is, minimally invasive surgery, which has the advantage of less bleeding and less pain!
During the operation, the doctor can see the adenoids on the monitor, and the operation is precise and simple, and it can be completed in only ten minutes.
Image source: Science Family Parenting Original
Post-operative care is also relatively simple:
On the day after surgery, there may be some discharge from the child's pharyngeal surgery site, and some children may snore more loudly, don't be afraid, it will be fine after 1 day.
On the second day after surgery, your baby will be able to eat and drink.
You may also have a fever for the first few days, but this is normal, and you can use Motrin or Tylenol to reduce fever without antibiotics.
After returning home, pay attention to the first 2 weeks, and avoid activities that exercise too much, strenuous exercise.
Other care is symptomatic, for example, if the child may have pain (pharynx, etc.), then Tylenol can be used for pain.
Most babies with enlarged adenoids are surgically removed to relieve symptoms.
However, if parents do not do a good job in the management of the baby's life and do not treat the corresponding primary disease, there will still be a risk of recurrence, and if necessary, they will need to continue to use drugs or even multiple surgeries!
Of course, surgical treatment is for babies with serious conditions, if the medical history is less than 3 months, you can try to treat with medication, follow the University of Science and Technology to look down!
03
What medicine does not take for a baby who is not serious, and how to care for it?
If the baby's medical history is less than 3 months, nasal congestion, runny nose, sleep snoring, hearing loss and other symptoms are not serious, and you do not hold your breath, you can use medication after the evaluation of a professional pediatric otologist!
In addition, medication care should also be dealt with according to the situation:
(1) If the baby is allergic, anti-allergic drugs are generally used, including oral cetirizine and loratadine.
For obvious local symptoms, intranasal nasal spray hormones can be used in combination, such as Neijuna and Fushuliang.
If you have a lot of nasal discharge, wash your nose and stay away from allergens.
(2) If there are repeated respiratory tract infections, it is recommended to take the baby to exercise first, work and rest regularly, avoid fatigue, improve self-immunity and avoid too much personal contact.
Image source: Science Family Parenting Original
(3) If it is confirmed that there is an immune deficiency, it may be necessary to actively treat the primary disease and treat it symptomatically according to the primary disease.
(4) If there is repeated inflammation of the tonsils, drugs for the treatment of tonsils can also be added, and if necessary, the bacterial culture of throat swabs and related examinations can be improved to understand whether there are pathogenic bacteria for long-term colonization.
Other diseases caused by adenoid hypertrophy should also be treated symptomatically!