In fact, it is not uncommon for children like this child to have facial changes caused by snoring and even affect their growth and development. So, how does snoring develop in children? Is surgery necessary? When is the appropriate time for surgery?
What is snoring in children?
Snoring in children, also known as children's obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (children's OSAHS). The most common cause of is enlargement of the adenoids or/and tonsils, which blocks part of the pharyngeal airway, leaving the airway in a narrow state for a long time. Only when you open your mouth can you feel smooth breathing. Because vibrates the uvula of the pharyngeal cavity when breathing through the mouth, snoring occurs.
What impact does snoring and mouth breathing have on appearance and body?
If the child has had bad breathing habits since childhood, his face will also change as he grows older, manifested as: protrusion of the upper front teeth, uneven teeth, loose lip muscles, open lips, and exposed teeth. Lips are everted, the mandible and tongue drop, the face becomes elongated, etc., which are called " adenoidal face ". As shown below:
Mouth breathing and snoring may cause dry mouth and induce or aggravate respiratory diseases. Therefore, children with enlarged tonsils and adenoids are often accompanied by rhinitis and sinusitis . Nasal secretions flow back into the lower respiratory tract, often manifesting as Chronic cough symptoms or recurrent respiratory tract infections, etc.
Enlarged tonsils and adenoids, combined with sinusitis, will aggravate the nasal congestion in children, and may also cause secretory otitis media, which may lead to hearing loss. The main manifestations are: watching TV with the sound turned up very loud; speaking in a low voice. He had symptoms such as difficulty hearing his speech clearly.
The most important thing is that snoring affects the quality of sleep, and the child does not enter a deep sleep state, which directly leads to a decrease in the secretion of growth hormone ; in addition, snoring during sleep can easily lead to hypoxia, causing damage to the child's brain and heart, reducing attention, and Memory loss, intellectual development disorders, and growth retardation , failure to grow, excessive weight loss, and frailty.
What should I do if I have mouth breathing or snoring?
If your child has mouth breathing or snoring, you should first go to the otolaryngology department to find out the cause. If the tonsils and adenoids are enlarged, it is recommended to have surgery as soon as possible. If there are chronic or acute nasal respiratory diseases, you need to have surgery after surgery. Standard treatment for rhinitis and sinusitis takes 1 to 2 months.
One month after the operation, after the wound is completely healed and the upper airway is completely unobstructed, you can go to the dental department for orthodontic treatment as appropriate.
special reminder: Without removing the obstruction in the airway, directly correcting the teeth will be ineffective; without removing the cause of the obstruction, directly using closed-mouth patches will be ineffective and even dangerous!
Do adenoids and tonsils need to be removed at the same time? Will it affect immunity if they are all cut?
Generally speaking, the reason why most children snore is that the tonsils and adenoids are enlarged at the same time, resulting in narrowing of the upper airway. In this case, it is recommended to remove both the tonsils and adenoids to prevent the remaining tonsils or adenoids from reproliferating (compensatory hyperplasia), which may require another operation.
Removal of tonsils and adenoids will not affect immunity. This is confirmed by clinical evidence-based medicine follow-up.
For children with only adenoid hypertrophy, tonsils can be preserved as appropriate.
Is surgery minimally invasive? Will general anesthesia affect children's intelligence?
Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy surgery uses low-temperature plasma ablation technology, which is minimally invasive, non-bleeding, short in operation time, and fast in postoperative recovery (see the picture below). The general operation takes less than half an hour, and the patient can be discharged after 4 days of hospitalization.
The current general anesthesia has a fast onset of action and rapid metabolism. The impact of anesthetic drugs on children is only limited to the period of anesthesia and 24 hours after the end of anesthesia. After that, it will no longer have any impact on the body, let alone intelligence. influential.
What should you pay attention to after surgery?
For simple adenoid surgery, you can eat semi-solid food the night after the operation, and you can eat normally the next day. If combined with tonsillectomy, you can eat semi-liquid food after the operation, which is generally recommended for two weeks.
Be careful after surgery: Rinse your mouth immediately after eating. Failure to clean your mouth properly can easily cause wound infection and even postoperative bleeding. Children should be encouraged to eat as early as possible in order to exercise more pharyngeal muscles, make the pain disappear as soon as possible, and reduce the possibility of foreign body sensation in the pharynx in the future.
In summary, if a child is prone to snoring or mouth breathing, he or she must be alert to the possibility of enlarged adenoids and tonsils, and go to the otolaryngology department in time for early detection and treatment without leaving facial changes or affecting growth. Developmental regrets.
(edited by ZS. Some pictures are from the Internet and have been deleted)
Hunan Medical Chat special author: Hunan Provincial People's Hospital Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Ma Lijuan
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