Call me dumb but I don't know what the difference is. Do you? Can you tell me?
On Wednesday I took Noah to the doctor for his well-child two-year check up. They did the usual measuring and weighing first. He was in the 95% for height and the 90% for weight, or maybe it was the other way around. I don't really remember which. Big, anyway. We then talked about the other usual things. Eating, sleeping, etc.
I mentioned a concern about his airways being obstructed when he sleeps and this has turned in to a major concern. At least to me. When she looked in his mouth she purposely checked out the back of his throat and exclaimed in surprise. It did not look good. She said she would not be surprised if he was having problems and sent us home to listen to him sleep at night and call her in week. I took a peek when we got home and holy cow! (Sorry, didn't think you would want to see a picture!) From here, if there is evidence of an obstructed airway we will move on to a sleep study for diagnosis and then what? Maybe surgery. Are there alternatives?
Over all this I cringe. I don't want anything like this for my baby (I know, I know, he is not really a baby anymore but he always will be to me, especially if things progress towards surgery. I mean cutting on him. Aaaggh!). He is supposed to be happy and healthy and have no bad things happen to him. Yeah, I know that too. Life wasn't designed to be easy and perfect. I also know lots of people with kids who have gone through this very thing. They made it through, surely we can, right? At this point I could be borrowing trouble.
I really didn't mean this to be a pity party. I really meant this to be an update on an item of interest in our lives and to, once again, see what info I could gain from those who know more than me. So, if this is topic you know anything about, please fill me in!
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Adenoids or Tonsils?
Posted by Leah at 8:32 PM
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4 comments:
well, for the record, I, for one, would like my little girls taken out...and they usually take out both at the same time if they are going to do any...with apparently similar enough results/risks/side effects. My girl has constant runny nose/open mouth breathing and just had to get ear tubes. I just think it would help. And I'm not overly concerned that those who are into more wholistic health really believe that both those items in the mouth really aid in the immune system. All our parents had them taken out without much consequence. So, there is my spill...risk vs benefit? Good luck deciding!
Hey Leah I'll give you a ring. We haven't done the tonsils but have some of the others done.
Thanks for the info. I should probably clarify that I am not opposed to having them taken out, I am greatly appreciative of modern medicine. I just dislike the idea of Noah being uncomfortable or hurting. And my phobia of pain, needles, etc., that always seems to color my reaction to things of a medical nature!
Leah, adenoids are in the sinuses behind the cheeks and tonsils are in the throat. They usually will take the adenoids at the same time as the tonsils, even if the adenoids aren't big. Ben had his out this past September. He also went through the sleep study. Every doctor who ever examined him commented on his huge tonsils. It wasn't until we noticed his sleep apnea that the doctor decided to do something about it. It's all fresh in my mind, so I'll email you about it!
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