Patient Nguyen Ngoc (4 years old, HCMC) lives in Japan and was brought back to Vietnam by his family to treat snoring and sleep apnea that had been present for over a year.
According to the mother of the patient Ngoc (30 years old, from Lam Dong, living in Japan), her daughter has been snoring loudly for over a year now, but she thought it was due to her constitution so she delayed treatment. The doctor in Japan diagnosed Ngoc with a deviated nasal septum, suspecting that she had adenoiditis (lymphoid tissue in the nasopharynx) that hindered her breathing, and needed further monitoring. After a period of time when her condition did not improve, the family brought her back to Vietnam for treatment during a business trip and to visit relatives.
Master - Doctor CKI Pham Thi Phuong (ENT Center, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City) said that the child came to the clinic with a stuffy nose; during the endoscopy, the child did not cooperate so they switched to X-ray.
The results showed that the patient had grade 3 adenoiditis and grade 4 tonsillitis, with the tonsils abnormally swollen, occupying more than 75% of the size of the pharynx (the middle part of the throat). In addition, due to the disease recurring many times over a long period of time, it led to bronchitis.
Doctor Phuong explained that because patient Ngoc had severe adenoiditis and tonsillitis, it led to complications such as snoring and sleep apnea. The cause was due to the inflammation of the tonsils and adenoids, which increased, compressing the throat, causing airway obstruction, forcing the child to breathe through the mouth while sleeping, causing snoring and continuous sleep apnea.
“For the past year, my husband and I have had to stay up to watch over our daughter while she sleeps, leading to lack of sleep, fatigue, and affecting our work,” Ngoc’s mother added.
After consultation, the patient underwent endoscopic tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy to treat snoring and sleep apnea. In addition, the doctor previously prescribed medication to treat bronchitis complications caused by prolonged illness. The patient was discharged after 24 hours and was free of snoring and sleep apnea after 2 weeks.
According to Dr. Phuong, not all cases of tonsillitis or adenoiditis require surgery. Mild cases only require medication or medical treatment. Surgery is only required when adenoiditis causes airway obstruction, recurs frequently, and is mainly for children 3 years of age and older because at this time, the child's immune system has responded relatively well. In the case of children under 3 years of age, treatment with medication is required and the patient must wait until they are old enough for surgery.
According to Dr. Phuong, if tonsillitis and adenoiditis are not treated, they will lead to snoring and sleep apnea, otitis media, laryngotracheitis, bronchitis, sinusitis in children... In addition, if the child has a stuffy nose, the child will breathe through the mouth while sleeping, which will cause the upper jaw to develop poorly, the upper teeth to grow unevenly, and the chin to protrude and become larger (buck-toothed).
To prevent upper respiratory tract infections in general and tonsillitis and adenoiditis in children in particular, parents should fully vaccinate their children against the flu, clean their children's mouths with saline every day; give children enough water to drink; limit exposure to smoky and dusty environments; keep children's nose and throat warm during the changing seasons...
