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Thousands of children undergo tonsillectomy each year – surgical removal of tonsils – without them needing them
A study conducted in England revealed that nine of these operations out of ten in this country -88% – are useless.
And warned that the surgical procedure could be more damaging than beneficial for children, besides the costs that this would entail for the country's health system.
The study published in the British General Medical Magazine, badyzed the records of more than 1.6 million children between 2005 and 2016.
found that out of more than 18,000 children having undergone tonsillectomy during this period, only in 2.144 (about 12%) was justified medically operated
] 32,500 of the 37,000 tonsillectomies performed in the UK in children or between 2016 and 2017 were useless. Criteria
As the researchers explain, tonsillectomy should only be offered if one of the main criteria is met:
- More than seven episodes of pain or pain. Inflammation of the tonsils documented throat a year.
- More than five episodes of sore throat or inflammation for two consecutive years.
- Three episodes of sore throat or inflammation a year for three consecutive years.
The study indicates that ] One in 10 children had suffered only one episode of sore throat or swelling before the intervention
He adds that two to three out of every 1,000 children had tonsillectomy each year between 2005 and 2016, but only one in eight had met the recommended criteria.
On the basis of these data, the study estimates that 32,500 tonsillectomies performed on 37,000 children In the United Kingdom, between 2016 and 2017, they were useless and cost US $ 48.5 billion to health services nationals.
Professor Tom Marshall, of the Institute for Applied Health Research of the University of Birmingham, England, is one of the authors of the study claim that tonsillectomy may be justified in the most severely affected patients.
But he adds that "research suggests that children with less severe pain or sore throat will not get enough to justify surgery, because at least in this case, the sore throat tends to occur. "
Studies show that tonsillectomies are performed in children of different countries without medical justification for the operation. The problem is not unique. from the United Kingdom.
Although the figures vary from one country to another and within countries, a research published in 2014 under the reference The Cochran e Review which compared tests carried out in several countries on the effectiveness of tonsillectomy, revealed that many of these operations were performed without sufficient medical justification.
Figures from the European Union show that in 2015, tonsillectomy rates in the Netherlands, Belgium, Finland and Norway were three times higher than those in the United Kingdom
. But the United States is the country where the rates of this surgery are the highest. Each year, more than 500 000 tonsillectomies in children are practiced and this is the third most performed surgery in the country.
The rate of procedures is so high that even has been described The tonsillectomy is considered "an epidemic".
"It's a silent epidemic of unnecessary medical care," said David Goodman, of Darthouth Atlas, in 2012, a health research database of the Research Institute on the health policies of Dartmouth. Health and clinical practice.
"In most cases, it is practiced in patients with much less recurrent symptoms than those who should be indicated," said Goodman.
Although the complications of the operation are rare, Complications
The experts also point out that, as with all surgeries, tonsillectomies can lead to complications that, although rare , can be serious.
"When this operation is carried out in the appropriate group of children, it can significantly reduce throat infections, improve sleep quality, doctor visits, use of drugs. antibiotics and, more importantly, improve the quality of life of the child and his family, "say experts at the McGovern School of Medicine at the University of Texas.
"However, the operation involves morbidity that includes hospitalization, financial cost, risk of anesthesia, postoperative bleeding and scarring" they add.
"In fact, up to 4% of operated children can be readmitted because of secondary complications, which means that making good decisions for this surgery is of paramount importance".
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