Acoustic rhinometry in the assessment of adenoid hypertrophy in allergic children.

Background: Due to the difficulties involved in assessing adenoidal tissue and the nasopharyngeal airway in children, it is necessary to find an accurate pre-operative method of measuring these structures.

Material/methods: We used acoustic rhinometry and endoscopy both to the evaluate results of surgical and medical treatment in allergic children with adenoid hypertrophy and to evaluate the influence of pollination on adenoid size in children with seasonal allergic rhinitis. Three separate groups of children were examined. The first group consisted of nine children with adenoid hypertrophy and positive skin-prick test results of year-round allergens. In this group we examined the influence of adenoidectomy on the rhinometric curve. The second group consisted of sixteen children with adenoid hypertrophy and perennial allergic rhinitis. In this group we examined the influence of medical treatment (topical nasal steroid and antihistaminic) on the adenoid size and rhinometric curve. The third group consisted of twelve birch pollen-sensitive children who had symptoms of seasonal allergic rhinitis. In this group we examined the influence of pollination on the nasopharyngeal period of rhinometric curve.

Results: In the two first groups we observed a significant increase of the nasopharyngeal cavity after surgical removal of the adenoids and medical treatment of the allergy. In the third group most of the children experienced a significant decrease in nasopharyngeal cavity volume during pollination.

Conclusions: Acoustic rhinometry seems to be a very promising method of assessment of the amount of adenoid, and allergy can play an important role in adenoid hypertrophy in hypersensitive children.