Acoustic rhinometric evaluation of nasal cavity and nasopharynx after adenoidectomy and tonsillectomy.

The occurrence of upper airway obstruction is frequently seen in patients with adenotonsillar hypertrophy. These patients usually also show hypertrophied inferior turbinates even without any other nasal or sinus disease. However, it is not known what the effect of adenoidectomy and tonsillectomy is on these hypertrophic turbinates. To determine the effect of these procedures on the nasal and nasopharyngeal geometry, we performed acoustic rhinometry previous to and 2 weeks following adenoidectomy and tonsillectomy, before and after spraying a decongestant in 31 children (19 males, 12 females; mean age, 8.03 years). After the adenoidectomy and tonsillectomy, there were increases in the cross-sectional area at the anterior end of the inferior turbinate (0.53+/-0.03 cm2 preoperatively, 0.65+/-0.21 cm2 postoperatively; P=0.01), the nasal volume (7.13+/-1.78 cm3 preoperatively, 9.38+/-1.65 cm3 postoperatively; P < 0.01), the cross-sectional area at the adenoid (0.80+/-0.53 cm2 preoperatively, 1.83+/-0.81 cm2 postoperatively; P < 0.01) before decongestion. However, 10 min after decongestion there was only a significant increase of the cross-sectional area at the adenoid (1.08+/-0.12 cm2 preoperatively, 1.80+/-0.20 cm2 postoperatively; P=0.01). We conclude that adenoidectomy and tonsillectomy reverse the congestion of the inferior turbinate which is observed in children with adenotonsillar hypertrophy and that acoustic rhinometry can be used to evaluate the effect of adenoidectomy and tonsillectomy on the nose and nasopharynx.