Scott E. Brietzke

The effectiveness of tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy in the treatment of pediatric obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Present and evaluate the currently available literature reporting on the effectiveness of adenotonsillectomy (T/A) in treating obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) in uncomplicated pediatric patients. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: Systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis of the reduction of the polysomnogram (PSG)-measured Apnea Hypopnea Index (AHI events/hour) resulting from T/A and the overall success rate of T/A in normalizing PSG measurements (%). RESULTS: Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria. Mean sample size was 28. All were case series (level 4 evidence). The summary change in AHI was a reduction of 13.92 events per hour (random effects model 95% CI 10.05–17.79, P < 0.001) from T/A. The summary success rate of T/A in normalizing PSG was 82.9% (random effects model 95% CI 76.2%–89.5%, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: T/A is effective in the treatment of OSAHS. However, success rates are far below 100%, which could have far-reaching pediatric public health consequences.

Can History and Physical Examination Reliably Diagnose Pediatric Obstructive Sleep Apnea/Hypopnea Syndrome? A Systematic Review of the Literature

OBJECTIVE: Using an evidence-based technique, systematically review the literature to evaluate the accuracy of routine clinical history and physical examination in the diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) in the pediatric patient. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: The biomedical literature was systematically reviewed. Articles comparing the results of clinical evaluation to polysomnography (PSG) were selected. The level of evidence was assessed using established evidence-based medicine (EBM) guidelines. RESULTS: Twelve articles were identified using the search criteria. Eleven of 12 articles concluded that clinical evaluation is inaccurate in the diagnosis of OSAHS. The level of evidence was good to very good (Grade B/B+). CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Clinical history and physical examination are not reliable for diagnosing OSAHS compared with overnight PSG. Complicating the interpretation of this work is the lack of a validated PSG threshold of clinically significant disease. There is an urgent need for the development of adequate screening tests with validated clinical outcomes. EBM rating: B-3.

Injection Snoreplasty: How to Treat Snoring without All the Pain and Expense

OBJECTIVE: We introduce Injection Snoreplasty: an innovative, safe, and effective palatal snoring procedure with minimal cost and discomfort to the patient. A well-described sclerotherapy agent, Sotradecol, is injected into the soft palate to reduce/eliminate palatal flutter snoring. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: Twenty-seven patients with a diagnosis of palatal flutter snoring (respiratory disturbance index less than 10) by sleep study were enrolled in the protocol. Office treatment sessions were performed 6 to 8 weeks apart. Success was judged by subjective improvement in snoring and objective evidence of palatal stiffening/scarring. RESULTS: Twenty-five (92%) of 27 patients reported significant decrease in snoring. There were no significant postinjection complications. Visual analog pain scale confirmed minimal discomfort. Most patients received more than 1 treatment (average, 1.8) in order to receive optimal palatal stiffening. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Injection Snoreplasty is a simple, safe, and effective office treatment for primary snoring. Advantages over current snoring procedures include simplicity, low cost, decreased posttreatment pain levels, and minimal/no convalescence.

Nonsurgical therapies for lymphangiomas: a systematic review.

Objective Systematically review the published literature regarding the efficacy of nonsurgical therapies in the treatment of head and neck (H&N) lymphatic malformations (LM) in children. Data Source MEDLINE. Review Methods MEDLINE was searched for literature relating to nonsurgical treatments for H&N LM. Results The initial search returned 1876 articles, with 22 meeting criteria. The majority (20) were case series. All therapies were percutaneous, with OK-432 or bleomycin sclerotherapy being most common. Random-effects modeling revealed 43% (CI = 28.9%-57%) of patients undergoing OK-432 for LM achieved a complete/excellent response, 23.5% (CI = 5.8%-41.3%) achieved a good response, 16.9% (CI = 10.3%-23.4%) achieved a fair/poor response, and 15.4% (CI = 8.6%-22.2%) observed no response. In the bleomycin group, the results were: 35.2% (CI = 15.7%-54.6%) excellent, 37.1% (CI = 22%-52.3%) good, 18.4% (CI = 2.7%-34.2%) fair/poor, and 11.6% (CI = 3.5%-19.6%) no response. Seven major complications were noted out of the 289 patients in the series, including two mortalities. Conclusions The literature indicates that sclerotherapy for H&N LM achieves excellent/good clinical response in a majority of patients, with few complications, and anecdotally does not complicate future surgery.

Adenoidectomy outcomes in pediatric rhinosinusitis: A meta-analysis☆☆☆

OBJECTIVEnTo evaluate the currently available literature regarding the reported effectiveness of adenoidectomy alone in the management of medically refractory pediatric chronic rhinosinusitis.nnnMETHODSnThe MEDLINE and EMBASE databases were systematically searched for English language manuscripts reporting on effectiveness of adenoidectomy alone in management of medically refractory pediatric rhinosinusitis. Additional manuscripts were identified by manual searching. Random effects modeling was performed to produce summary estimates of adenoidectomy effectiveness.nnnRESULTSnNine studies met the inclusion criteria. Six were cohort studies (level 2b) and four were case series (level 4). Mean sample size was 46 subjects (range = 10-121) with grand mean age of 5.8 years (range 4.4-6.9 years). All studies showed that sinusitis symptoms or outcomes improved in half or more patients after adenoidectomy. Eight studies were sufficiently similar to undergo meta-analysis. The summary estimate of the proportion of patients who significantly improved after adenoidectomy was 69.3% (95% CI = 56.8-81.7%, p < 0.001). The possibility of author bias was explored as one author group contributed a large proportion of patients to the study group.nnnCONCLUSIONnAdenoidectomy reduces caregiver reported symptoms of chronic rhinosinusitis in a majority of pediatric patients. Given its simplicity, low risk profile, and apparent effectiveness, adenoidectomy should be considered first line therapy for medically refractory, uncomplicated pediatric rhinosinusitis.

Outpatient tonsillectomy in children: A systematic review

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the level of evidence regarding the safety of outpatient pediatric tonsillectomy. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: The medical literature addressing outpatient pediatric tonsillectomy was systematically reviewed. The level of evidence was assessed, and data were pooled. RESULTS: Seventeen articles met inclusion criteria. Each article suggested that outpatient tonsillectomy was safe. The overall level of evidence was fair (grade B —). Pooled data analysis in the perioperative period showed a complication rate estimate of 8.8% (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.5%–12.1%; P ≤ 0.001) and an unplanned admission rate estimate of 8.0% (95% CI, 5.3%-10.7%; P ≤ 0.001). Subgroup analysis suggests that children under age 4 are at a higher risk of complications in the perioperative period with an odds ratio of 1.64 (95% CI, 1.16–2.31). CONCLUSION: The level of evidence supporting the safety of outpatient pediatric tonsillectomy is fair. The analyzed data show a higher rate of early complications and unplanned admissions in children under age 4. SIGNIFICANCE: The current evidence supports the practice of outpatient tonsillectomy in properly selected children. EBM rating: A-1a

Pediatric tonsil size: Objective vs subjective measurements correlated to overnight polysomnogram

Objective: To compare subjective and objective tonsil size measurements (weight, volume, intertonsillar distance) along with simple pharyngeal measurements in the prediction of pediatric obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) severity. Study Design: Prospective case series. Subjects and Methods: Tonsil size (0–4+) and Mallampati/Friedman palate position were subjectively measured. During adenotonsillectomy, tonsil size was objectively measured along with simple pharyngeal dimensions. Spearman rank correlation coefficients were calculated and forward and reverse stepwise multivariate regression modeling was used to assess the prediction of preoperative OSAHS severity as determined by polysomnogram (PSG). Evaluation of possible outlier influence was also performed. Results: Thirty-four pediatric patients (median age, 4; range, 2–9) were included. Objective tonsil weight (Spearmans ρ = 0.6143, P = 0.0002), tonsil volume (ρ = 0.4960, P = 0.0039), and intertonsillar distance (ρ = −0.7559, P < 0.0001) were strongly correlated with subjective tonsil size but not with age, body mass index (BMI), or preoperative apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). Regression modeling demonstrated that only measured tonsil weight (β = 1.43, P = 0.003), age (β = −3.21, P = 0.001), and hard palate length (β = 0.979, P = 0.003) were significant predictors of the preoperative AHI (R2 = 0.5358). Evaluation of possible outliers indicated tonsil weight was the most robust predictor of preoperative AHI. Conclusion: Subjective tonsil size measurements correlate well with objective tonsil volume measurements. However, only objective tonsil measurements were significantly predictive of objective PSG-measured OSAHS severity.

Injection snoreplasty: Extended follow-up and new objective data

OBJECTIVEnInjection snoreplasty was recently introduced as a safe, effective, and minimally invasive treatment for primary snoring. Extended follow-up data (19 months) are presented from the initial pilot study cohort, and pretreatment/posttreatment objective data are presented on a new prospective patient cohort.nnnSTUDY DESIGN AND SETTINGnThe successfully treated patients from the initial pilot study (n = 25) were surveyed regarding their current snoring level, overall discomfort, and overall satisfaction. A new patient cohort with primary snoring (Respiratory Disturbance Index <10) was prospectively treated with injection snoreplasty. Snoring was objectively measured pretreatment and posttreatment using a take-home acoustical analysis device.nnnRESULTSnSubjective success dropped from 92% to 75% at a mean of 19-month follow-up with a snoring relapse rate of 18%. Objective analysis of a new patient cohort (n = 17) confirmed statistically significant decreases in palatal flutter snoring and palatal loudness after injection. Preprocedure measurements were highly correlated to eventual treatment success.nnnCONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCEnSuccess and snoring relapse rates of injection snoreplasty are similar to those of other current treatments. Objective analysis confirms the procedure is effective in reducing palatal flutter snoring. Preprocedure snoring analysis may predict patient response to palatal stiffening treatments.

Injection Snoreplasty: Investigation of Alternative Sclerotherapy Agents

OBJECTIVE: Palatal sclerotherapy with sodium tetradecyl sulfate (“injection snoreplasty”) was recently introduced as a safe and effective treatment for primary snoring. However, multiple other sclero-therapy agents also have excellent safety records and documented efficacy in the head and neck. Widely available and inexpensive agents were evaluated as potential palatal sclerosing agents for the treatment of snoring. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: A described canine palatal flutter model was used to evaluate the palatal stiffening efficacy of ethanol, doxycycline, and hypertonic saline in comparison to 3% sodium tetradecyl sulfate (STS) and a negative control (normal saline). Based on the animal study results, a human pilot study with ethanol was performed with subjective and objective data. RESULTS: Ethanol was found to be equally effective as 3% STS in the canine model. Doxycycline was effective but less so, and hypertonic saline was comparatively ineffective. Palatal injection in human patients with 50% ethanol was found to produce equivalent subjective and objective snoring efficacy and equivalent pain and recovery time compared with 3% STS. However, there was a higher rate of transient palatal fistula with ethanol. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE: Injection snoreplasty with 50% ethanol is equally efficacious compared with 3% STS. There could be a higher fistula rate with the use of ethanol, although this complication has been self-limited and transient in every case.

Acoustical analysis of snoring: Can the probability of success be predicted?

Purpose Palatal flutter snoring is the most common form of snoring. However, other types of snoring do exist. Does identifying palatal snoring beforehand translate into improved subjective treatment success with palatal stiffening procedures? Methods Fifty-three patients presenting with snoring were evaluated with a commercially available device. The proportion (%) and magnitude of palatal flutter (dB) were quantified. Patients then underwent a palatal stiffening procedure and subjective success/failure was assessed. Results Overall subjective treatment success was 85% (45 of 53). The percent palatal flutter was the most predictive of success (area under ROC = 0.8556, 95% CI = .7428-.9683). Patients exceeding 68% palatal flutter had a 95% (39 of 41) success rate (P = 0.001, Fishers exact) and an adjusted odds ratio of treatment success of 25.2 (95% CI = 3.22-196, P = 0.002). Conclusion Palatal stiffening treatments are successful in the majority of patients. However, identifying patients with predominant palatal flutter snoring significantly increases the probability of subjective treatment success. EBM rating: B-2b