Adenoidectomy plus tympanostomy tube insertion versus adenoidectomy plus myringotomy in children with obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome

• Published in: Journal of laryngology and otology Vol. 125; no. 3; pp. 274 - 278
• Main Authors: Vlastos, I M, Houlakis, M, Kandiloros, D, Manolopoulos, L, Ferekidis, E, Yiotakis, I
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01.03.2011
• Subjects: Adenoidectomy; Adenoids - pathology; Adenoids - surgery; Audiometry; Audiometry, Pure-Tone; Bacterial diseases; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child, Preschool; Confidence intervals; Ear diseases; Ear, auditive nerve, cochleovestibular tract, facial nerve: diseases, semeiology; Eardrum; Ears & hearing; Ent and stomatologic bacterial diseases; Female; Hearing loss; Human bacterial diseases; Humans; Hypertrophy - complications; Infectious diseases; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Ear Ventilation; Non tumoral diseases; Otitis Media with Effusion - complications; Otitis Media with Effusion - surgery; Otolaryngology; Otorhinolaryngology. Stomatology; Patients; Pneumology; Prospective Studies; Quality of Life; Questionnaires; Recurrence; Remission (Medicine); Respiratory system : syndromes and miscellaneous diseases; Seasons; Sleep apnea; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive - complications; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive - surgery; Sleep disorders; Treatment Outcome; Tympanic Membrane - surgery; Otitis Media; Middle Ear Ventilation; Middle Ear Myringotomy; Adenoidectomy; Human; Nervous system diseases; Sleep apnea syndrome; Tube; Respiratory disease; Middle ear disease; Insertion; ENT; Treatment; Surgery; ENT disease; Otitis media; Ventilation; Adenoid enlargement; Middle ear; Child; Comparative study
• ISSN: 0022-2151; 1748-5460
• DOI: 10.1017/S0022215110002549

To determine whether tympanostomy tube insertion has benefit, compared with simple myringotomy, in children with otitis media with effusion who receive concurrent adenoidectomy as treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome caused by adenoid hypertrophy. Fifty-two children older than three years with obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome were randomly assigned to receive either adenoidectomy plus tympanostomy tube insertion (group one, n = 25) or adenoidectomy plus myringotomy (group two, n = 27). Pre- and post-operative health-related quality of life was assessed using the otitis media-6 (OM-6) tool, and audiological outcomes were recorded six and 12 months post-operatively. Group one showed better quality of life scores six months post-operatively (score difference -0.38, confidence interval -0.65 to -0.10) but not 12 months post-operatively (score difference -0.23, confidence interval -0.76 to 0.11), compared with pre-operative values. Audiological outcomes did not differ significantly at either time point, compared with pre-operative values. Tympanostomy tube insertion confers a short term benefit, compared with simple myringotomy, in children older than three years with otitis media with effusion who receive concurrent adenoidectomy as treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome. Further studies are necessary to identify which of these children will receive long-lasting benefit from tympanostomy tube insertion.