Sleep problems of as many as 80-90 of children suffering from obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can be effectively treated with a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy surgery, as per a Saint Louis University study.

Ron Mitchell, M.D., professor of pediatric otolaryngology at Saint Louis University and the study’s author, was of the view that OSA has a considerable impact on children’s life quality, on the lines of chronic asthma and rheumatoid arthritis.

The study was the largest to date and focused on potential factors like ethnicity and age that can have an effect on OSA diagnosis and surgery result.

From News-Medical.Net:

“Even though OSA resolved in the overwhelming majority of children after the surgery, it is still crucial to identify and treat children with persistent OSA,” Mitchell says. “Otherwise these children will continue to experience the health, behavioral and learning problems associated with OSA.”

Several options for treating persistent OSA exist, including: nasal steroids, allergy treatment, additional surgery or continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) mask. Over time, some children who did not experience immediate resolution will normalize, Mitchell says. Children who are overweight must lose weight in conjunction with the surgery for a successful outcome.

Obese children and children with Down’s syndrome or other genetic disorders that affect the craniofacial anatomy were excluded from the study because the rate of OSA is known to be higher.

Dr. Mitchell emphasized that children who score way outside the normal parameters on behavioral measures benefit the most from the surgery.