Large tonsils(and adenoids in many cases) can cause mouth breathing, snoring, poor sleep quality with frequent awakenings, incontinence, and even pauses in breathing.
Additionally, facial and palate development problems, swallowing difficulty, muffled voice, dental caries, slower weight gain, irritability, and low school performance may occur.
What are the problems related to enlarged tonsils and adenoids?
Enlarged tonsils and adenoids can negatively affect breathing, sleep quality, swallowing, and facial development. Sleep-related difficulties may manifest as snoring, sleeping with the mouth open, frequent awakenings, bed-wetting, and even shortness of breath. Additionally, poor-quality sleep can lead to angriness, diminished academic performance, and slowed weight gain.
If there is an underlying treatable condition such as sinusitis, allergies, or reflux, medical therapy is the initial course of action. However, if the problem does not improve after a three-month follow-up, removing or reducing the size of the tonsils and/or adenoids can correct childhood obstructive sleep apnea by up to 90%.
Unfortunately, despite clinical guidelines recommending against the use of antihistamines, nasal sprays, and expectorants due to their lack of efficacy and potential side effects, outdated treatment approaches are often still employed, resulting in side effects, wasted time, and effort.