So my 3 yr old grandson has now being diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnoea. He had a sleep study done a couple of weeks ago, and the report came back today with a recommendation to fast-track him to the top of the ENT surgical list at our world famous Children’s Hospital.
The report noted an average of 115 apnoeic episodes every hour. :eek: We expect he’ll be scheduled for the operation (tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy) within the next couple of weeks or so.
Anyway, so what can we expect in terms of the surgery, recovery etc for the little tacker?
It’s one of my earliest memories. I don’t remember it as very traumatic. I remember that I was allowed to eat a lot of icecream and that my parents gave me a puppet of a grenadier guard.
Icecream and a present? This going to hospital thing was great!
It was my earliest memory too Princhester, but I only had my tonsils removed. I was four yrs old, and in those days you had to stay in hospital for a week…with visiting hours twice a week only.
The icecream didn’t make up for the horror being away from home for SUCH a long time, and being attended by big-bosomed matrons with loud, cranky voices.
It was a long time ago, but my tonsils and adenoids were removed when I was a small child.
The surgery wasn’t much fun–lots of adults in masks, and I couldn’t recognize the friendly doctor whom I had met before the procedure. I was told I’d be going to sleep, but they wouldn’t let me have my teddy bear, with whom I always slept. This was a little worrisome to me. Never mind; they put me to sleep and once I came out of the general anaesthetic, there was my teddy bear, and Mom, and lots of ice cream and Popsicles. And time off school. As I recall, I was in the hospital overnight, followed by a week or two of convalescing at home.
I’d suggest that you make your grandson aware of what to expect (you’ve been there, done that), and reassure him that you or Mom or someone he knows will be there when he comes out of it. You might make the surgeon aware that he or she identify him- or herself to the child when masked, before the child goes under–I would have felt much better if I’d known which of the masked people was “my” doctor. Your grandson’s teddy bear (or favourite toy) will be there when he wakes up, and there will be plenty of ice cream and Popsicles. The provision of those treats were what sold me on the idea of going along with the procedure.
Hope the little guy makes it through like a champion!
I was 3 or 4. Tons of kids had their tonsils and adenoids removed back then. You were promised ice cream but you didn’t feel much like eating for a while.
When one’s mother is a paediatric nurse and is a colleague of half the nurses on the ward, one tends to get a lot of positive attention I wasn’t “that kid” I was [insert my mother’s first name] little boy.
I had tonsils and adenoids out when I was 5. I don’t remember how long I was in the hospital afterwards, but I do remember that when they put the ether mask on me, somebody said, “Count backwards from 100,” and I thought, "I’m five, I can’t count forward to 100.
I got ice cream, jello and cream of wheat. I was happy.
Look all you old farts! I’m NOT interested in your personal experiences of having your tonsils/adenoids out. I’m wanting some parents to chime in as to how to look after their little tackers post-operatively.
Problem is that I don’t think they do that operation so often any more. It was a normal thing for us old farts. I have boys the right age but they haven’t had this done and I haven’t heard of any of their mates having it done.
Tonsillectomies were a virtual ‘rite of passage’ for kids in our cohort, you’re right there Princhester. I don’t think any kid in my hometown made it past the age of 6 with their tonsils intact!! (Our genial GP in the 1960’s was known as Doctor Tonsillectomy by the staff at the regional hospital, renowned for his propensity to refer any kid with a sore throat for immediate surgery).
But there are still medical indications for the surgery (as my lil grandie has shown!)
I know you’re looking for parent contributions but I don’t have any so I will contribute my own experience.
It was awful. I had just turned 6, had a standard tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy and it didn’t go as well as I’d been promised. I had a bad reaction to the anaesthesia drugs and spent 3 days in the hospital (we supposed to be out the next day) puking my guts out and in a lot of pain - it hurts to throw up after throat surgery! They wouldn’t give me any of the popsicles and ice cream I’d been promised because I couldn’t keep food down. I could only eat consommé and water.
My mom stayed with me in the hospital, but they wouldn’t let my sister come visit so I didn’t see her or my dad for a few days. I wasn’t allowed any toys or personal items (this was the 70s).
I was only 6 so I wasn’t very good at knowing when I was going to throw up so the nurses had to change my sheets a few times. When my mom was out of the room one nurse told me that if I threw up on myself again I had to lie in it because she wasn’t going to change my sheets again.
Had my T’s and A’s out in kindergarten. It was really sort of like a fun adventure. Even with a minor complication (when I first woke up in the recovery room my nose wouldn’t stop bleeding so they had to put me back under) I still remember it without really any negative memories. My parents did get a little worried when it took so long (due to the complication), tho.
I (barely) remember when I had mine removed. I think I was 5 or 6, and it was done because I kept having repeated middle ear infections. after having them removed I never had another one.
Some jackass doctor told my parents I would not have a speech defect anymore if I had my tonsils removed ! WTF! I was 11 years old and my younger sister had her removed too. She healed a little faster than me and No it didn’t get rid f my speech defect . Having your tonsils removed was as common as getting a
a hair cut when I was kid. I did have a real weird dream while under anesthesia. And while waiting for my parents some girl threw up on my dress!
Tom had his adenoids done around 8am yesterday (and grommets in his ears). By afternoon, he was running around (and being admonished not to, as per doctor’s orders). He had ibuprofen as he went to bed and slept through the whole night without waking. This morning he says he has no pain, and hasn’t had another dose of pain relief. Doctor says he can be back at kinder on Tuesday. The only sign that anything has happened to him is he has a very blocked nose.
Tonsils are obviously the worst part of what your little guy has to look forward to, but adenoids haven’t been too terrible to get through.
Ok obviously I don’t know the whole story, this part had me going “wuhbuh?”
An uncle’s perspective; My neice at age 4 had her tonsils out, for constant sore throats, sleep difficulties aaaand there was one other reason I can’t recall. It was like flipping a switch in her…from sad, pale, tired waif(you could almost physically see the bedraggled-ment of personality) to “Oh My GOD someone please find the off switch for this little spazdroid PLEASE” in the span of about 48 hours after the surgery. Her little smile was blinding at first, cause we’d never seen it before.
I wasn’t “that kid” I was [insert my mother’s first name] little boy.