My 3Yr Old Is Having a Tonsillectomy and Adenoidectomy

My daughter was 3yrs when she had her adenoids removed. The worse part is just coming them down when they wake up. Are you having it done at the hospital??? If so, they'll probably take him before back before they put him to sleep. But if they don't, I've been with my daughter when they put her to sleep and its so fast that they don't even realize whats going on. It will be fast and almost painless. As far as trying to explain it to him, I would just tell him that he's going to the doctors, and that he'll go to sleep, and when he wakes up, he'll feel all better!

E.~

I am suprised you doctor told you it was going to worse for your 3 year old...I was told when my 2 year old had it done that they are much better off having it done at a young age...but anyways my son did not spend the night in the hospital, he went in at 8 am and we were leaving the hospital at 5 pm that night. Recovery was slow and the first night was kind of nerve racking but I kicked the hubby out and brought my son to bed with me. Anesthesia was a concern to me too but before the surgery the anesthesologist came and talked with us and told us all about what would happen and got to know him a little bit better. Made me feel better to meet the person that would be hold my sons hand when I couldn't. I took a camera and did before and after pictures so one day my son will have memories and I didn't do this but the mom in the same room that we were in brought her sons blanket and stuffed animal to have when they came out of recovery. I feel so dumb for not soing it my self but I was wrapped up in being worried about my son.

I am sooo glad we had the surgery done. My sonn is a different person now.

Good luck and I pray everything goes well
~L.

Ok deep breaths. As I read, it felt that you were more panicked with each word you typed. The first thing to know is if he senses that you are nervous he will be nervous. I had my adenoids out when I was 4. I remember being on the table and breathing the 'sleepy air' I remember waking up and the whole ride home. I don't remember being scared because the doctor and the nurses were so nice. I was nauseous as soon as I woke up and vomited a few times before we left and once on the way home. I got to eat popsicles and people brought me presents...really I was on cloud nine!!

Recently my three year old cousin had her tonsils out. My Uncle said she did really well throughout the procedure. She slept a lot the rest of the day but the next day she was up and playing. I took my boys over to play the day after that and she was just as energetic as she's always been.

Its really a simple operation and they do everything through the mouth and nose so there will be no cutting him open :) Does this help?

my sone was 3 when he had this same procedure. The surgeon talked to him and gave him some coloring sheets to take home explaining what was goign to happen. We talked about it several times before we went in. I was terrified.

Them telling you it is harder on a 3 yo is just not true. The younger they are the faster they bounce back. He will do just fine!

He is a child that throws up very easy and this made me nervous. they gave him some happy medicine before they gave him the mask, he was happy to go with them because of this, and the seperation was too easy.

After he woke, he did freak out. They gave him pain medicine, but he still panicked at the icky feelings, never has tolerated medication well. I held him, calmed him best i could til we could leave. Once home He did fine. Slept most of the rest of the day on the couch. I gave him some of the prescription pain meds once or twice that day, but he hated it so we went to Tylonol and advil after that and he did great. It was no time and he was back to himself.

Dont let him see your nerves, and keep it positive. Have help for your other kids that day and devote yourself to him.

I am very non medical. I dont believe in any extra treaments, meds, so on and so forth. But I am so very glad we had this done. My son can sleep again. He can breath at night. He doesnt come down with fevers and infections every 3 weeks. It has been a God send.

Hi E. -

I'm surgery is taking place, but my daughter has a T&A just after she turned three at OHSU. Both her primary care, and the ENT never once said that it is worse on the young ones - they BOTH said that it was better b/c they recover quicker and forget. They were right.

The entire procedure from check-in to check-out was ~ 5 hours. Her surgery was ~ 45 minutes, and recovery about the same. At OHSU the recovery beds have TV's that pull right down in front of them and all the channels of cartoons they'd like to choose from, also - you are right there so the only time they see you're not with them is as they're dozing off.

As far as telling him, it's up to you and the kind of child he is. We told Taylor that she was going to have surgery and have her tonsils taken out b/c they were not letting her get a good night sleep. She was fine with that - she asked if we could take them home :) - obviously that didn't happen!

Recommendations for when they are in recovery: Taylor's been under general anesthesia 3 times so far - so I've learned!

1. Don't let him have too many popcicles...I'd say limit him to 2. Try to have him drink water instead - not too much sugar. (unfortunately, she threw-up in the car on the way home b/c her stomach didn't do well with the sugar)
2. Don't give him any milk for 24-48 hours - recommend the 48...she got sick off the milk too.
3. The best thing that worked for her was chicken broth. I put it in one of those cups with a straw that you could close. That was the best for her.

Hope this helps!

Hi Ellen,

My son didn't have his tonsils removed but did have surgery for a hernia when he was about 2 1/2. It was a quick 45 min. surgery and he was sent home pretty quickly afterwards without any pain meds....nada! He was fine though......bouncing off the bed within hours.

I wanted to respond though regarding anesthesia. I was very worried about it as well....it's nerve wracking when you hear the statistics. Yes, there is only a very small chance that something bad could happen, but as a mom, sending YOUR child in to surgery, you worry if that small percentage could be your child. So I completely understand where you are coming from.

Here's how it went for us: About an hour or so before the procedure, they gave my son a medication called Versed. I'm betting they will give your son something to make him not so anxious but different docs use different meds. The Versed is an amnesiac medication that basically makes it so that after the surgery is done, he won't remember any thing from the point the Versed kicks in. They gave my son a gameboy to play with and with that med in his system, he was totally loopy and very focused on the game. When they came to take him to surgery, I got pretty teary as I was worried about how he would react to a stranger picking him up and carrying him away from me. But when i went to say goodbye to him, he just looked at me with the blank stare and off he went, no problem. So i was thankful for that.

After the surgery, he was pretty weapy but not from pain. He was just generally sad which is a common side effect from anesthesia. Once he left the recovery area, he was put in a room until the meds wore off a bit more and was given something small to eat to make sure he could hold food down. They brought in another video game which he played for a while and then they sent us home.

All in all, the whole thing was much easier than I thought it would be. It was definitely a good experience....well as good as I guess surgery can be.

I just wanted to throw my $.02 out there and let you know it will be OK! :) Good luck!

Anesthesia-

My son gets an MRI every 6 months now. He used to get one every 3 months. For each MRI he's completely sedated. We've had several different kinds of experience with sedation.

Mask sedation- this freaked him out... it was very traumatizing for his head to be held and even for the mask to be hoovered over his nose. His eyes were wide open, he tried to bite the Dr.s and Nurses, he struggled to grab the mask with his hands, kicked, squealed, screamed. Mostly he hated having his head held tight, controlled, and straight as he was held down by 3 nurses. That was when he was 2 years old.

I would not recommend mask sedation without a calming down drug such as benedryl or Versed prior to the experience. The best experience we've had with mask sedation is when he was already asleep. The nurse wanted to wake him up before placing the mask over his nose, but the anesthisiologist said that was rediculous.

Ask the docs if mask sedation (laughing gas) is part of the plan, if it is either object to it or request a calming medicine such as Versed. That drug will make him like a silly drunken sailor, loopy, but usually pretty goofy, cooperative, and happy. Rarely there is a side effect of hyper aggressiveness (which we have also experienced).

The reason why I suggest objecting to the mask sedation is because it's not necessary. The coarse of events is that the child gets the calming down med, cooperates with going under by mask sedation, then in the operating room, the nurse inserts the IV (when the child isn't aware of the pain) and then the anesthisiologist maintains IV sedation.

IV sedation- This is the main way that the docs perform complete sedation. We skip the Versed, and we skip the mask anesthisia. We just go straight for the IV now a days.

The nurses can provide numbing cream for the skin on his hands so that the pain of inserting the IV will be reduced. The child still feels the pressure of the poke and the uncomfortable feeling inside of pressure on the vien but, not the sharp poke on top of the skin. We put numbing cream on both hands just incase the nurse needs a second chance.

It's standard protocol for the same nurse to only try 2 times, then another nurse can try to insert the IV if there's difficulty. But, a total of 3 try's should be the limit. We experienced the trauma of 16 torturous tries at one time, then, I became aware of the standard. I will -never- let that happen again! My son was severely dehydrated that's why it took so much.

* Keep your child hydrated with clear juices right up to the cut off time (which should be around 3 hours before sedation). It will keep his veins plump for the IV.

* And put a diaper on him for the operation.

When it comes time to insert the IV, bear hug him facing toward you. One nurse will hold his arm while the other inserts the IV. Hold his head because the anesthesiologist should be right there to inject the sedation drug.Only one time did we have the IV inserted and then had to wait for the anesthesiologist to arrive 15 minutes later. We try to do it all at once.

Anyhow, he will fall asleep on you in seconds. Then, just lay him down on the bed. The nurses will hook him up to monitors to check, oxygen levels, breathing, heart beat, etc. And they will wheel him away.

My son cries, yells, and kicks whenever the IV is inserted. I don't know what he feels. The bear hug is the best way to control his body and keep him close. All I say is, "Mommy's got you. I know it hurts. Mommy don't like it either. All done."

When he wakes he wants a bottle, sippy, blanky, to be held, and rocked as he wakes. If he can sip/suck, the nurses know that the child is waking normally. He remains kind of loopy for the rest of the day, wants to walk, but can't keep balance. So we stroller ride around the hospital, watch movies, ride the wheelchairs, wagon ride, etc. until he can stand up with out tilting. It can take all day for it wear off sometimes.

There's always a risk with anesthesia/sedation, but the docs are very attentive.

Talking and explaining ahead of time-

Do it in the moment. Before anyone touches him, just briefly explain things like, "Oh, here's our nurse, she's going to hold your hand and put lotion on it, she'll wrap it with a bandage but not because you have an owie. It will feel like a glove, but you can still play." When it comes to the moment when the IV gets inserted just be honest and say something like, "Now, the doctor does have to give you a shot or poke (he should know what that is). The lotion will stop the owie from the poke, but if it does hurt (which it probably will anyways) hug Mommy tight. I will be holding you with a hug to help you (as you wrap him around you)." And talk him through it, "That nurse will hold your arm still while the Dr. gives you the poke and then all done." He'll cry, kick, scream, not like it... (probably) but just reassure him, "I know it hurts. Mommy don't like it either. Mommy's got you." And before you know it, his head will feel heavy on your chest and he'll be sleeping like never before.

Talking through it in the moment in a calm and gentle way is the best way to give him understanding and avoid unecessary anxiety and anticipation. Don't be upset and chattery... that's too chaotic. Just be honest, clear, and calm, letting him know that you understand that he doesn't like what's happening.

I have pictures of my son under sedation on the Updates (Latest News)page of my website. He's 2 and 3 years old at the time. You are welcome to take a look.

http://huntersfirthunt.tripod.com

Everything is going to be just fine. The pediatric Doc are experts at what they do.

Y.

Hi E.,

I can respond to you from two different angles. My daughter had her tonsils out when she was two. I stayed up all night worrying. I didn't sleep a wink, and presumed I would sleep when she came back and was sleeping off the anesthesia......HA! She came back fully awake, threw up, and wanted to go to the play room, which we did. She ate popsicles, and ice cream, and finally went to bed at her normal bedtime that night. She only vomited because the nurse forced Tylenol down her which she said she didn't want. As soon as it hit her stomach it bounced. They did not try to force any more down her and she was fine.

Now then, I also used to do tonsillectomies at least 10 times a week, as they were so fast and generally easy that one surgeon in particular whom I worked with did 5-7 in a row on a certain day. The person who said that there was no cutting is incorrect. They have a tonsil tool, which acts like a lasso and the loop is pulled back to lob it off, then she is right in that they do cauterize the remaining tissue. The anesthesia for little ones can be pretty simple or kind of traumatic. There are two basic approaches. One they can start the I.V. which hurts but they soon fall asleep, or they can have you go in, not allow you to touch anything sterile, they'll instruct you, have you hold a mask over your childs face (which tastes like Cherry but is anesthesia) until they fall asleep, then you leave and they insert the needle, start the i.v. and before you know it they are done. I would speak with the anesthesiologist about which method they intend to use, and ask about doing which ever one sounds right for you and your child.

Take a deep breath, try to relax, and you will have this behind you before you know it:-)

Best of luck,
T.

My daughter had her tonsills and adnoids out when she was 3 and we had absolutly no problems. The only problem I had at first was she did not want to eat right after and they had to force feed her something so that she could go home (which I complained about). When she was knocked out I was able to hold her while they put her down (but this was 12 years ago) I do know that I had a hard time getting her to want ice cream (go figure) she wanted McDonalds french fries.
They don't cut them open. They are visible and use a scope. It really is an easy operation. Plus, the good thing is, My daughter is hardly ever sick. In the past 12 years I can count on 1 hand how many times she has been sick. I am hoping to get my youngest daughters tonsills out too. She is 7

I hope this helps.

E., my middle name is Ellen, spelled differently is yours pronounced the same?

I haven't had a child that age have surgery but I've had several surgeries myself including a tonsillectomy when I was 30. I've heard more than once that a tosillectomy is much easier when one is younger. I certainly hope so. I do think it might be harder for a 3 yo to understand why his throat is so sore and will need a lot of reassurance while he heals.

And he won't have the fear of anesthesia that we older people have. Anesthesia has gotten better and better over the years. My last surgery was 3 years ago and I woke up feeling good. I asked if the surgery was over and they laughed and they had given me pain medication while I was still under and so I didn't feel pain for a few hours. I expect that they'll do the same for your son.

My daughter had a tonsillectomy when she was 17, 11 years ago. She was feeling reasonably good in a couple of days. The anesthetic wasn't as good even then.

My cousin had a tonsellectomy when he was 7 or 8. As I remember it he was more upset about not being allowed to talk than the pain. He loved all the ice cream and jello. I think that they don't put restrictions on talking now.

There are some good books on a preschool level about being in the hospital. Maybe you could find one in the library to read to him. And from my experience with my granddaughter who was hospitalized after a severe asthma attack at age 3 your son is able to understand more than it sounds like you think. You definately need to briefly tell him about what is going to happen in general terms and do it with as little anxiety about it as possible. At that age kids trust their parents and if the parent appears confident that the child will be OK then the child will be less frightened. And if you don't tell him, he may trust you less and become frightened about other situations because you didn't tell him about this one.

I think that this surgery will be harder on you then him. Has he ever had a sore throat? For me my throat was less sore after surgery than it had been when I'd had tonsellitis all those years.

You both will be OK. I understand the anxiety. I love those presurgery pills. Valium, I think. Maybe you could have some? :) Seriously. One of my friends who sat with me before one of my surgeries said it wasn't fair for me to be so calm and her to be so anxious. The doctor will have to prescibe them before you get to the hospital. My friend couldn't get any. The nurses just laughed.

My son was 2 when he had his tonsills and adenoids out. He was always getting ear infections and was sick all the time. He also snorred louder than anyone I have ever heard! It was very difficult to wait during the operation! Before it was ok...the nurses were great! They gave him some "goofy juice" to drink about 10 min before he was wheeled off to the OR...it pretty much made him drunk and he didnt mind leaving me then. LOL! When the operation was finished, i was able to go back and comfort him while he woke up. That was the hardest. He was so little, and didnt understand! He cried and screamed! He was so strong, and i almost couldnt hold him as he wiggled...his ears and throat and head hurt! it was almost an hour of this! (they said it was normal reaction) When he finally calmed down, we were allowed to go back to our room. Then we started introducing some popcicles and such...which he coudl not keep down. They gave him some pain meds, and i sat there and rocked him for a good hour or two more...him throwing up every little bit. Finally he was able to keep some liquids down for a bit, and they released us. He went home with a rx for pain killers. The next two days and nights were hard! He was hungry, but couldnt eat. He didnt want the pudding and jello and popcicles that i got him...he wanted what everyone else had! nights were bad when he laid his head down! He got to where he hated the pain meds...it smelled and tasted horrible! After that, though...there were no problems!!!!! He rarely gets sick now! It was a hard thing to work through, but it was worth it.
A. :)

Ive never heard a doctor say it would be bad. My oldest son had his out at 6 and was fine the next day. a bit sore but it didnt keep him down. My mom got hers out and it was down and out for two weeks. She was 46 when she did it.

My best friends kid had hers out at 2 and was up and runnin the next day. My 2 year old is about to get his out too and all the dr's said he should be fine.

For all of these people it was an n and out and back home that night. Just stock up on ice cream and popsicles and macaroni and cheese. that one was a big favorite for hunger needing real food.

My 2 year ol has had 4 surgeries all ready so I understand your fear. There is no reason to explain it to him. he wont understand all you need to tell him is he will go to sleep and when he wakes up his throat will be sore and he will get lots of ice cream and pudding and jello. Also there really isnt any cutting going on. These days the tonsils and adnoids are usually removed by cauterization.

In my experience with surgery the worst part for the child is the IV. Theygo to sleep for the rest. and my sons never had a problem with anasthesia. If I can answer any thing else for you lt me know. Good luck.

My 6 yr old son had his taken out 2 months ago. and yes it was bad. they do give liquid vicotin but it tastes really really bad and the only way he wouldn't notice is i would put it in choc milk. It will be rough for about a week.

Hello there, I can sympathize, my son, now seven, had the exact same procedure done when he was three. I was scared too. I told him that he was going to go to the hospital to have ickies taken out of his throat. The only cutting is a mini incision to the skin holding the tonsils, no stitches o anything, the adnoids literally get scraped off his throat. The only time he would be kept overnight is if he had a reaction to the anesthesia, although it is possible, and the biggest risk, he should be fine. My son's recovery was quick. He was up and going the next day, it is harder to keep them down like they need to be, they tend to bounce back really quickly. If I can be of any more help, let me know. I hope I eased your mind even just a little. Oh we also went and picked him up jammies and slippers to where to the hospital so we would have to change him a bunch of times, we also got him a charater pillow, you know with arms and legs, we made it a thing for him. Good luck, my thoughts are with you...

Have no fear! I'm gonna tell you my story when I had my tonsils out, and I remember most of it. I was about 5 or 6, and I went in, they put in the IV which I didn't cry (Most kids do though, I'm weird), and I waited to go into surgery. Now while I was waiting, I had my stuffed rabbit Mr Rabbs with me. The doctor let me take him with me to the surgery room. I remember being wheeled to the room, and then there was the gas, and then all of a sudden, I wake up and there was Mr. Rabbs with a bandage around his neck. He got his tonsils out too! I was really queasy from the anesthesia, my throat hurt, and I threw up several times, but I got tons of popsicles, and a new stuffed dog that I still have to this day! I went home that same day, and it took me a day or two to shake off the drugs, and my throat hurt for a while, but I was back to being a kid in no time. I even remember making a friend at the hospital. :)

Anyway, it's a simple surgery, your son is gonna be fine, but give him something like his favorite stuffed animal or whatever for security. Good luck!

My daughter had her tonsil's and adenoid's taken out when she was 2 years old. She had very bad sleep apnea also. It was very stressful when she had to go under anesthesia because she also has severe asthma and the anesthesia can cause complications with asthma while she was under.
Fortunately everything went very smoothly. She did not have any breathing problems, she got to go home that evening, had very little pain, and a quick recovery.
All in all after all of the stress and sleepless nights that I went through before the sugery, it was one of the best things I could have done for my daughter. She went from snoring like a 400lb man and waking many times through out the night coughing because she had stopped breathing, to a little girl who sleeps peacefully through out the night.
As far as talking with her before hand, I did not talk to her until the day of the surgery and then I just told her that we were going to a special doctors appointment. And the best thing that you can do for him when it comes time for them to take him away to surgery is to be brave and just let him go. Believe it or not it is a lot less stressful for the child to just go with the doctors/nurses, they are able to be more brave for them. They can feel your stress and are more likely to freak out if you are with them.
GOOD LUCK! I know how hard this is and I feel for you. But you and your little boy will rest much better when this ordeal is over.
My thoughts will be with you.

Understanding mom in Seattle.

My daughter had hers out when she was 5 and she did better than I thought. When she woke up she was so drugged she looked at me and smiled and said she wanted to do that again. She had dried blood in her nose and around her mouth and that was kind of shocking for me I wasn't expecting that. The first 3 days she actually did surprisingly well. The 4th and 5th day were the hardest. But after the fact she didn't really remember much and her apetite totally increased. She never really ate much before. I stocked up on lots of jello and popsicles before the surgery and we just laid on the couch afterwords and watched movies. I hope everything works out for you. Make sure you take one of their favorite stuffed animals or blankets with you it will help if they can take it to surgery.

My niece is 3 and just had her tonsils taken out. She was in and out that day. She did get dehydrated a few days later but she is fine and ornery just like nothing happen. I know it is hard to take your little one to the doctors and having an operation. If your child is a strong willing child he will be okay. As for me 2 of my boys have had surgery when they were young and they pulled right through the operation and the anastesia