Open Up and Say Ahhh

Tonsillectomies, once a rite of passage for children, may be making a comeback.

Most remember the sore throat and never-ending supply of ice cream, though today this surgery is a rarity. Rochester dentists Kurt Doolin, and Jeff Haddad say the benefits of tonsillectomys should be re-examined

Haddad says, "It may be worth having your children's tonsils checked if they have poor sleeping habits including sleeping in odd positions, earaches, sore throats, visits to the hospital to have tubes installed in their ears, and subsequent visits when those fall out."

The doctors say common treatments, such as tubes in the ears, focus on the symptoms only, not the cause."Tubes are like putting a Band-Aid on a wound," Doolin says. They just relieve pressure and drainage, and don't address the underlying cause.

Complications from enlarged tonsils or adenoids can be developmentally devastating to dental health, choking off a child's - even an adult's - airway."The tongue shoots up to the roof of the mouth, causing the teeth to collapse inward in the lower jaw and the palette to push upwards from the force of the tongue."

Catching the problem early enough, before the mouth becomes too distorted, could prevent future orthodontic treatment, or at least lessen a child's time in braces, the dentists say.

"Children and adults can have problems with obstructive sleep apnea," "Sometimes it can lead to behavioral problems. With children it can affect their ...

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