Safe Day Case Adenotonsillectomy: Experience from a Private Hospital in Jos

Background: Adenoidectomy, tonsillectomy or adenotonsillectomy are very common day case operations in childhood otolaryngologic practice. The complications are few, short lived, with minimal disruptions of both parental and patients' activities. The aim of this paper is to report the complications of day case adenotonsillectomy in a private hospital setting in a developing country. Methodology: This is a 30-month (January 2008 April, 2010) retrospective review of adenoid and tonsillar operations carried out in a private Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) surgical centre, in Jos, Nigeria. Results: A total of 117 patients were seen during the study period. Forty (34.2%) patients had benign tonsillar diseases. Thirty three (82.5%) were tonsillar hypertrophies with obstructive symptoms while the remaining seven (17.5%) were cases of recurrent tonsillitis. There were 16 males and 24 females giving an overall male to female ratio of 1:1.5.The youngest patient was 15 months while the oldest was 8 years. All the patients had tonsillectomy by cold dissection. The duration of hospital stay was between 12 and 16 hours. The most common complications were nausea and vomiting and dysphagia. There was a case of aspiration of breast milk, while two patients had arrhythmias. All the histologic reports were consistent with tonsillitis and tonsillar hypertrophy. Conclusion: Day case tonsillectomies in private hospitals settings are safe with few complications that are often not life threatening. It should be encouraged in our environment in private hospitals where the facilities are available.Key Words Day case tonsillectomy, adenotonsillectomy, otolaryngolog