My Grandson is 11. He is scheduled to have his tonsils & adenoids removed this Fri. He doesn't have an issue with sore throats but he has breathing issues. He can't breathe through his nose very well, he wakes up at night because he can't breathe, but he doesn't snore. He is a very quiet sleeper. That is what worries me. I hate to put him through this and he still have the breathing problems on top of recovering from his tonsilectomy and adenoidectomy. Any suggestions?

Zezo - posted on 10/24/2012

My son (11) had big tonsils (grade3) and a big adenoid (70 %)and he was snoring at the same time.He had 1 or 2 strep infections but a lot of colds and sore throats a year.Our ENT doctor decided for the surgery after the sleep apnea test because it turned out that he had moderate sleep apnea and it has no cure with medications.He had the surgery 3 days ago.It went really well,no problem with anesthesia,he has some pain that he says not worse than when he had the strep infections:)) It was a hard decision for us but our doctor told us he is going to get in puberty,a period that he will grow fast if he sleeps well.I think you should follow your doctor's advice.Good luck

Donna - posted on 07/14/2012

My Grandson is the same way with the smelling It's either intense or he can't hardly smell at all. Both before & after the surgery.

Chaya - posted on 07/13/2012

My oldest daughter had her ears tubed at age 5, and her adenoids taken out a year later. I don't get why they didn't do both at the same time, as the adenoids needed to be taken out much earlier. Her voice is a little more nasal, but she doesn't get nearly as many ear infections, she breaths much easier, and she can smell much better. I've noticed that she either has an extreely dull sense of smell or an extremely intense one. Don't know if that's relevant, but it's something to potentially expect.

Elizabeth - posted on 07/10/2012

My daughter went through this last year. A good doctor, easy surgery..they don't remember much because of the drugs they give them. Sore throat afterwards but lots of Popsicles...My daughter no longer has ear infection, breathing problems or a constant cough...She was a preemie and honestly all her little passages were that...little, ear wax couldn't drain, airway constricted by swollen tonsils every time she had an ear infection etc. Trust your doctor...and if you don't..get another one. We did well, hope your grandson does too.

Donna - posted on 06/22/2012

It's been a week today and we have not seen any bleeding. My Grandson has done great. He would start having a lot of pain when his pain medication was due but about 20 min after taking he would be fine. Most of his pain is in his ears which is normal Watch the 2nd week though as they feel better they want to do too much and could start bleeding then. We still have that to go through I'll let you know how we did. Let me know how your Daughter does.

Desiree - posted on 06/21/2012

You can have obstructive apnea w/out snoring just like a person can snore w/out having obstructive apnea. :) I hope that your grandson quickly recovers! :)

Anna - posted on 06/21/2012

my little five year old princess will be having her tonsils out monday....am so nervous but it will be all for the better as she suffered so much, my concern is the risk of bleeding, how often dose this happen and what shud i expect.?

Donna - posted on 06/17/2012

I want to thank those that responded to my post. They have been most reassuring. My Grandson is doing great! When his pain medication wears off he's in a lot of pain. The medication does wonders. He's eating chicken noodle soup minus the chicken and the noodle being cut into small pieces but he's eating & drinking. He said, "I can breathe through my nose!" Since this is something he could never do very well. So far he hasn't had any breathing problems since. This is the 2nd day and I am so happy that he is doing so good.

Carol - posted on 06/17/2012

Hi. My son's tonsils nearly touched the uvula (hanging thingy in the back of the throat) on a normal day. When he got sick he just had a tiny hole to breathe out of. His adnoids were huge and we were told that he had never breathed out his nose before we had the tonsils and adnoids removed at 3 years old. He'd been a choker since he started eating solids. I mean flip on his stomach and do the back slap and sweep the throat choking at least every few days. I'd been asking his doctor about the size of his tonsils since I noticed them at about 18 months. She always said they were big, but he'd grow into them. She knew his history of choking and never seemed concerned. He'd never had an ear infection and only had strep once or twice. I pushed the issue and finally got in to see an ENT at 3 years old. The guy acted like we'd tried to kill our son. He yelled at us for not coming sooner (we'd been asking for 18 months). He said that he may die if he caught a cold before the operation. He had the operation and things have been perfect ever since. The sore throat wore off in a week or so. His voice changed quite a bit because it wasn't as nasally. He doesn't snore like a chainsaw and I don't have to sleep with my hand on his chest whenever he gets a cold anymore just to make sure he's breathing. We also got a new pediatrician. Bottom line - trust the ENT. Get a second opinion if you want reassurance. The recovery hurts, but it obviously outweighs the risks of not breathing. I explained to my sons that it's like vaccines. They hurt, but the alternative is way worse (my older son wondered why we'd willingly put his little brother through something so hard). Good luck

Donna - posted on 06/12/2012

No, he doesn't get strep a lot. He does have sleep apnea. He was referred to an ENT. The ENT said his tonsils didn't look too big, but from what we described he was having obstructive sleep apnea and if we wanted he would take his tonsils out. We felt that is what he needed from the beginning but just the way the ENT said his tonsils weren't too big and if we wanted, plus he does not snore, not even a little worried me. Anyway since then we did get an xray of his adenoids and the dr said they were significantly large and needed to be taken out. So that made us feel better. I was worried that we'd put him through this and he'd still have the breathing problems on top of a very sore throat. Hopefully this will help him with his breathing.

Shauna - posted on 06/11/2012

Does you son have sleep Apnea? I'm not a doctor, but I had my daughters Tonsils and Adnoids taken out because she was getting sore strep throat a lot and she snored like a hibernating bear and she was only 7 years old! Did you get a second opinion from an ENT before the surgery was scheduled?

Donna - posted on 06/10/2012

Oh I forgot to mention he will often hold his ear when swallowing and will not swallow any type of pills for fear of choking.