So, the same week, we got Andrew in to the ENT and he said he would be a good candidate for tonsil and adenoid removal surgery because it does sound like it's affecting his sleep and he viewed the video as well. I am nervous, as any parent would be with putting his/her child under general anesthesia. We are hoping this helps with his daytime sleepiness (he is really hard to wake up) and overall behavior (30% of kids who are termed "ADHD" actually have sleep apnea and the behavior is corrected with the surgery). I'm still not 100% -- I mean, this surgery is not necessary, and the recovery is not fun (10 days) and he doesn't snore ALL night long, so do we really need to do this? I observed him last night while he was sleeping, with the camcorder again, and counted 22-24 seconds of not breathing after he started coughing/choking, keeping in mind that he doesn't have a cold -- this is just something he does. Sleep apnea can affect oxygen levels, which in turn can cause problems down the road, so I do think we are doing the right thing.
He's so vulnerable. It makes me sad to think that he won't even know what's coming and he's going to wake up from the surgery feeling like shit. I can't really prepare him for his because he's too young to understand. It'll be same day surgery -- it takes about 45 minutes, and then he'll go to recovery before finishing up in Pediatrics. They said the biggest concern is dehydration so they want to make sure he gets enough fluids in.
Surgery is scheduled for Wednesday, September 15th. I will know more details this week because they are sending a packet from the clinic.
Do any of you have experience in this?
Just so this post isn't totally doomerish, here are some pics of the aforementioned children:
