my 4 yr. son has recently developed symptoms of sleep apnea...scary, to say the least! we've gotten two opinions from different dr's...one says he should have adenoids removed, the 2nd dr. suggests that both adenoids and tonsils should be removed. he has had recurring ear infections this winter only...never as a baby. i understand that these body parts are all connected and that each case is different, and i certainly would love to avoid surgery all together ... i guess i'm just looking for some success stories to aleviate some of the stress of making such a decision. has anyone had their children go thru this surgery to relieve sleep apnea issues?
from a very stressed and VERY sleepy family....
My 4 yr old had trouble sleeping because of breathing, sinus infections, and ear infections. The Doctor didn't want to put her through an allergy test...so he ended up putting tubes in her ears. Haven't had problems since and it's been almost a year.
I have heard that getting tonsils and adenoid out does help, but I'm okay with her just getting the tubes.
My dtr had the same issue, we got her tonsils and adnoid removed. It was wnoderful for her. The sleep apnea had started giving her sinus infections and chronic headaches. The younger they are the easier the recovery.
My daughter had her adenoids removed at age three and we spent the next 6 months wondering why on earth we had resisted so long. She was like a different child. Go for it. He'll heal up fast and you'll be so glad you are all getting along better on more sleep.
First of all, there are 2 types of sleep apnea - one causes disturbed sleep (not dangerous) and the other involves the cessation of breathing (often due to neurological issues, not obstruction). You don't need to be so scared if that's not the problem so be sure you know what you are dealing with.
I have many friends who got rid of this problem in their children with nutritional means - no more ear infections, several children avoided ear tubes, still have tonsils and adenoids. You could try this if you really want to avoid surgery. It makes sense to me. I also have sleep apnea and had enlarged tonsils since childhood, but I sleep much better now and never get colds or the flu, and my tonsils are normal sized and my doctor is thrilled with my lab work.
My son was 6 years old when he had his tonsils/adenoids removed (at Yale-New Haven Hospital), and the entire family is elated! My son's father had sleep apnea, and at times it use to scare me to death of how he was sleeping. When my son was 1st born he was already a snorer and loud to boot...however, his sleep apnea didn't really begin until after about 2 yrs old, when we noticed certain foods were aggiating his sleep and snoring, when went to the doctors and they figured it was all food allergies, and gave him, nasonex, singular & weekly trips to the allergies where we did locate an extensive list of allergies - especially to Peanuts (deadly to him - however we never tried it because his father was also highly allergic to Peanuts). Well after a diet overall, we did see some changes, however he was also allergic to outdoor items (pollen, mold, etc) and those things kept him suffering from time to time, except with his medication, and later helped to introduce asthma.
What made me finally decide get the surgery was when our basement got flooded during a storm, and we had to have everything removed, we sent the kids to their grandmothers, while we demolition the basement over the weekend, and the evening my son returned, we rushed him to the hospital due to a severe reaction to the mold in the air (even with the proper ventilation and construction tools to help eliminate this - he was still able to have a reaction). After speaking with a ENT specialists we decided this was the best thing for my son, and indeed it was. We no longer wake up in the middle of the night to listen to him breathe, in hopes that he will take his next breathe with in moments; or have my other son wake me up because he can't sleep because he brother is snoring so loud; or worry about sickness (contracting it from other people or seasonal colds/flu).
In the end, my son is living a much happier life, and is well rested, as well as the rest of the family. He does still take his nasonex, singular & inhaler, however, as a preventitve tool, especially the inhaler. He still needs it during the Spring/Fall months due to pollen/molds, but at least he is living a healthier life style. Hope my (long) story helped!
Has either or both dr's been ENT's? If not, I'd start there. My son had his adenoids removed in December due to chronic, chronic, chronic sinus infections-he's doing great and it was exactly what he needed. Our ENT didn't feel the need for the tonsils to be removed-i'd be curious as to why the one dr recommended that since I don't think they play a big part in the sleep issues---but adenoids can. Our dr had asked us if our son had apnea or snoring issues.
Either way-if you decide to just do the adenoids, it's a simple procedure and recovery is not bad so I wouldn't be overly worried about it, (but of course you're a mom-it's what we do!)
I know a few people that had their adenoids out as young children that needed their tonsils out as teenagers/young adults and their recovery was a lot worse and longer then if they would have had it done all at once when they were little.
My friends on had them both removed last year and he is a different child. His grades have improve and so hasn't his behavior at school.
I have no experience with this, but one of the blogs I follow just had a few posts about the issue. The links are below.
http://dagmarbleasdale.com/2011/01/sleep-apnea-or-tonsill...
http://dagmarbleasdale.com/2011/02/preparing-for-a-tonsil...
http://dagmarbleasdale.com/2011/02/landons-tonsillectomy-...
http://dagmarbleasdale.com/2011/02/tonsillectomy-caring-f...
my daughter, who just turned 4 had this done in the fall. I was very nervous, but she had the sleep study and it was recommended that both tonsils and adenoids come out. She did great though, kids are stronger that ya think! You might as well have both done at once, I have noticed a HUGE difference in my daughters sleeping!
My son had it last year at 6yrs. old due to sleep apnea. His teacher alerted us that he was very sleepy in class. I took him to an ENT, who said he did have large tonsils and we should consider doing a sleep study to find out if he did have sleep apnea. We went through with the sleep study( a night at the hospital, hooked up to lots of things-not bad though). He infact did have sleep apnea 14 episodes, which for a child in bad, so he did have his tonsils/adniods removed. Ican tell you he is a different child. Much calmer, when he sleeps you don't even hear him or see him move!
Now my younger son who is 6 now, will be having the same surgery in March. He too has sleep apnea. When he went for his sleep study he had 30 episodes! I guess for us this runs in the family! Which is crazy!
Good luck, if he indeed does have sleep apnea, I would recommend the surgery. Can you imagine sleeping so poorly all the time?
