New research suggests that performing an adenoidectomy on a pediatric patient who suffers from recurrent upper respiratory tract infections is no more effective an option than simply waiting and observing whether the frequency of infections decreases on its own.
In a study published last week in the British Medical Journal, Dutch researchers randomly selected 111 children between the ages of 1 and 6 who'd suffered chronic infections. Half received surgery and half watchful waiting. Parents took temperatures daily and recorded such symptoms of infection as colds, coughing and sinusitis during a 2-year follow-up.
The results showed little difference between the surgery and the watchful waiting groups. Children who underwent surgery averaged 7.9 upper respiratory infections per year, while the children who were just observed averaged 7.8 infections per year. Researchers also found little difference in the duration of each group's infections, the number of middle-ear complaints and the children's health-related quality of life.
Dan O'Connor
