My 7 year old son is having grommets inserted and at the same timeunderstandably hes having his adenoids removed....understandably I'm worried about this risks af anesthetic (and no-ones told me what they are yet!!!)
I'm also interested to know if having his adenoids removed will cure his sleep apnea???

Can anyone reassure me?
Feel free to ask me more questions if you need to !!

My son had his tonsils and adenoids removed about a year ago. Before that he wasn't sleeping or eating well, due to the size of his tonsils, i think it was hard for him to swallow. Since having both removed he's been sleeping (he used to snore really badly) and eating better. Theoreticly it's supposed to cure the apnea because when the adenoids are enlarged it can impare air flow while sleeping. So assuming your son has no other problems it should clear things up. There is always a risk with anesthetic, alergic reaction etc...the anestheolgist should discuss the risks with you before the surgery, i know here it is routine for him/her to examine the patient before hand and check the patient out for any health issues that may cause a problem (illness, cold etc) and he will listen to your childs heart and lungs. Durring this meeting ask all questions you have no matter how silly they seem to you..it will put your mind at ease durring the surgery.

Thanks for the reply ..... i wanted to make sure i was doing the right thing as i feel that because the adenoids shrink and glue ear clears up on its own the surgery wasnt vital but i was of the mind that his sleep apnea is going to be damaging his heart and could have problems later in life so therefore would check that having his adenoids removed would clear this up.
Still really worried about it all ...(hypernasal speech might be a result af the op http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/frown.gif ) and im also wondering why they arent removing his tonsils (not that i want him to have half the insides of his face removed) because they are and always have been huge!!
I'm told they are going to do all the vital checks before anesthetic ( oh dear another prob he has is that he goes very red in the face even after just a couple of minutes of exerting play so i asked at the hospital to make sure all was ok there http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/frown.gif )

Anyway will report back and let you know how it goes
( its too scarey being a Mum isnt it ( and i got a 15 year old too!!!! http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/confused.gif )



[This message has been edited by MargyP (edited 06-26-2002).]

Margyp my son has had grommets fitted 4 times.They are very tiny,usually white in colour.They are inserted into the ear to help the fluid build up to get out(GLUE EAR).It really helped my son,after this operation my son could hear me properly,at school the teachers noticed the difference too.I wish you well.