Adenoidectomy: Correlation Between Individual Factors, Surgical Technique, and Residual Adenoids

Overview

Adenoidectomy is the most commonly performed otolaryngological surgical procedure in children. The removal of adenoid lymphoid tissue is intended to clear the nasopharynx and restore the patency of the nasal airways. In most cases, adenoidectomy leads to an improvement in symptoms and quality of life. However, in some patients, symptoms recur with the presence of lymphoid tissue obstructing the nasopharynx. In these cases, a surgical revision is often necessary. The traditional surgical technique is performed using an adenoid curette or Shambaugh adenotome without direct visualization of the surgical field. Among the known limitations of this surgery is the possibility of leaving intraoperative adenoid residues. In the literature, regarding the detection of adenoid vegetations in patients who have already undergone adenoidectomy, the term "regrowth" of lymphoid tissue is often used; however, this term is correctly applied only when there is certainty of complete adenoid excision during the procedure. In the absence of this certainty, it would therefore be more accurate to speak of persistence or recurrence of adenoid hypertrophy after adenoidectomy. However, this phenomenon is poorly understood due to the scarcity of information in the literature regarding the incidence, associated factors, and etiology of this clinical entity. In particular, there is still debate over whether the recurrence of symptoms following the detection of nasopharyngeal lymphoid tissue is due to incomplete surgical resection, or whether individual factors may coexist and contribute to the recurrence of adenoid lymphoid tissue. To date, the scientific literature has focused almost exclusively on intraoperative variables independent of the patient. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether there are patient-specific factors at the time of surgery-such as sex, age, weight, height, and soft palate length-that may influence the surgical efficacy of the traditional technique in terms of complete removal of adenoid lymphoid tissue.

Conditions