TITLE:
Coblation Intracapsular Tonsillectomy and Coblation Complete Tonsillectomy for Obstructive Sleep Apnea
AUTHORS:
Itzhak Braverman, Alex Nemirovsky, Adi Klein, Miriam Sarid, Galit Avior
KEYWORDS:
Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Tonsillectomy, Coblation, Intracapsular Tonsillectomy, Pain, Adenotonsillectomy, Tonsillotomy
JOURNAL NAME:
International Journal of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery,
Vol.4 No.5,
September
11,
2015
ABSTRACT: Objective: Total tonsillectomy and intracapsular tonsillectomy are common procedures for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in children. The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of coblation intracapsular tonsillectomy (ICT) and coblation complete tonsillectomy (CT) as treatments for OSA. Study design: A retrospective study of all the children ages 2 - 18 years with OSA who underwent coblation intracapsular tonsillectomy (ICT) or coblation complete tonsillectomy (CT) from January 2007 to August 2010 by the same surgeons at one institution. Methods: Data were retrieved from children’s charts and from telephone interviews with children’s parents, regarding pre and postoperative OSA-18 scores, postoperative pain, postoperative complications, use of analgesic drugs, and time to return to a solid food diet. Results: All 43 children who underwent ICT and 37 children who underwent CT suffered from OSA before surgery, and none did postoperatively. There were no minor complications in the ICT group, compared to 13.5% in the CT group (p = 0.01). According to parental report, 72% and 21% suffered a low level of postoperative pain, and 9% and 33% severe pain in the ICT and CT groups, respectively. For these respective groups, 49% and 73% needed analgesic drugs (p