Sleep Apnea Treatment

Question by jj: Oral surgery for a very small lower jaw on child? Detailed question!?
My daughter is 3 now and will be 4 at the end of August. A few months ago her dentist referred her to an ENT doctor and an oral surgeon when he noticed she has a very small lower jaw.

She was in for a sedation appointment to fill cavities when he noticed her lower jaw “falls over her throat” when she is sleeping (which can cause sleep apnea) and that it is very small.

He says if surgery is the answer, now is the time to do it. Otherwise we would have to wait until she is 17 or 18.
We saw the ENT first and he says nothing he can do- the oral surgeon needs to see her first.

Now as I wait for our first appointment (about 4 months since the dentist referred her) I have so many questions.
First, if she does need the surgery, is she going to be too old now- and will we have to wait until she is in her teenage years?

If she does need the surgery now- what can I expect? How long is the procedure, and more importantly about how long will it take for her to recover from it? What can I expect?

I realize I will get these answers once we get the appointment. I cannot find anything online about a young child having this surgery. I am just so anxious and worried for my daughter. She has a slight speech delay as well. Her dentist and speech pathologist both say this will help improve her speech along with other things.
Has anyone else had a young child go through this surgery before? Thanks in advance for the advice!

Best answer:

Answer by LX
See an orthodontist, i think not to rush in to surgery for the jaws at this age she is still going to grow too much in her teen years

Give your answer to this question below!

Question by ѕкує вℓυє αкα ανα’ѕ мσмму: Did your child have their adenoids and/or tonsils removed… a few questions?
My daughter is 2.8 years old. Her pediatrician referred her to a Ear, Nose and Throat specialist after seeing results of an x-ray they took of her face. Apparently the results came back saying her adenoids are enlarged and the specialist will probably want to remove them… as well as her tonsils (even though her tonsils are fine). I asked him why he would remove the tonsils if there is nothing wrong and he said that they just usually do the tonsils if they are already doing the adenoids.

My daughter has sleep apnea, snoring, repeated ear infections so I do have hope that once as her adenoids are removed… she can get some relief. Tubes in her ears would be beneficial as well. I just don’t think that I want her tonsils removed if there is nothing wrong with them.

I guess my questions are that:

If your child has had their tonsils removed… is it painful when they wake up? I know when they get their tonsils removed, the recovery can be a few weeks long. I just want to know the difference between the two recoveries.

Another question is: What was the reasons you had for your child being referred to an Ear Nose and Throat specialist. Did you see an improvement in your child after surgery?

We see the specialist on Wednesday

Best answer:

Answer by chatrbox424
I personally think you should definitely voice your opinions/concerns about the removal of her tonsils and let them know if there is nothing wrong then you don’t want them removed as they do serve the function of fighting off infections and keeping things from entering the airway/lungs that shouldn’t be there!!!! My oldest had his out at 6 and honestly he did bounce back pretty quickly, the only rough parts were the initial wake up and being disoriented and uncomfortable for a day or two, then explaining that for X amount of days no matter how fine he felt he could NOT have chicken nuggets!!!! He was referred to and ENT due to horrendous snoring and lack of sleep and his tonsils were like your daughters adenoids, HUGE, abnormally so and that is why the snoring, he couldn’t breathe, the doctor was honestly amazed that he could even swallow without choking!!! Best of luck, hope all goes well and she has a speedy recovery

Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!

Question by Christi C: How do you know if doctors are doing enough for your child if there is so much information for them to review?
My daughter’s lung collapsed at birth and after three weeks was released from the NICU with no medications or machines. She was sounding very congested and her Dr. finally referred her to an ENT. That Dr. found that her adnoids were growing down into her throat which caused apnea. She is too young for surgery but her apnea monitor sounds often. A sleep study has confirmed that her saturation (blood oxygen) dropped below 70 % at times and put her on oxygen at home when she sleeps which is quite the challenge. Since then she has also been diagnosed with PDA and ASD Heart diseases; Anemia (even with iron suppliments); high platelet count; pulmonary hypertension. I’m at my witts end! I feel that I’m seeing all these different doctors and no one is putting the information together. They are all puzzled at how healthy she looks to have all of these things wrong. Is anyone in a simular situation or could shed some light on what could be going on? She is so precious. God bless!

Best answer:

Answer by the_only_solorose
demand a patient care conference with all the doctors in attendance to combine their efforts.

Add your own answer in the comments!

Question by a13535: how long does it take for a child with edenoid hypertrophy to recover after surgery in his social development?
the child (4.5 yrs) suffered from sleep apnea as a result of the enlarged adenoid and his social development (esp. peer relationships) seemed to be delayed. his adenoid and tonsils were removed in a surgery so the sleep apnea seems to have been corrected. when can we expect that he catch up in his social development?

Best answer:

Answer by Half Pint Nessa
My cousin Robert had those problems. He is still an outcast at fifteen. He is VERY hard to get along with, and he had his adenoids out as a one or two year old.

Add your own answer in the comments!

Question by Peace69: Does my child have sleep apnea?
My child is a four year old who snores mostly throughout the night and will sleep through an atomic blast. She has said more recently about feeling tired after getting home from daycare. This has been going on for the last 3 or 4 months. She normally gets 10 hrs of sleep a night, and we keep her mostly on a strict sleep schedule. She seems like in a daze most of the time, attention span is waning, and even though it has always been a struggle, she doesnt have the safety concerns that most kids have. For example, she will try and run in a parking lot (mainly cause she is excited), but she has been told about being careful mutiple times. Even though my wife and I think that she would eventually be in gifted and talented, this recent behavior has caused some concern.

What doctor (specialist) should be seen about this? Has anyone experienced this before? Improvement seen after treatment? Any changes in the home to be tried before seeing a doctor?

Best answer:

Answer by Sassy 24
Yes, take her to the dr. a ear and throat dr.

Add your own answer in the comments!