The Effect of Adenotonsillectomy on Growth in Prepubertal Children

Background and Objective To document the effect of adenotonsillectomy on prepubertal growth in children according to preoperative growth status and follow up period. Methods The clinical records of 161 prepubertal children with sleep breathing disorder who underwent adenotonsillectomy between 1998 and 2007 were assessed. The height, weight and body mass index (BMI) was converted to z-score (standard deviation scores) for their ages. Preoperative growth status was divided to three groups (less than 25th percentile, 25–75th percentile, and more than 75th percentile). The changes of weight, height and BMI were evaluated according to follow up periods and preoperative growth status. Results The slopes (Δz-score/year) of general parameters (height, weight, BMI) were not significant statistically. For height-for-age, < 25th percentile group had significant increase of z-score by 0.155 per year (p = 0.009), but the other groups did not. For weight-for-age, z-score of 25–75th percentile group was increased by 0.119 per year (p = 0.010) and z-score of > 75th percentile group was decreased significantly by 0.096 per year (p = 0.039). But for BMI-for age, the slopes of all groups were not significant statistically. Conclusions Adenotonsillectomy could make constant increase of height during prepubertal period for < 25th percentile children. Also adenotonsillectomy make constant increase of weight for 25–75th percentile children, and make decrease of weight for > 75th percentile children during prepubertal period. Adenotonsillectomy might have different effects on growth indices of children with sleep disordered breathing according to initial growth status.