Dexamethasone Decreased Postoperative Complications in Tonsillotomy.

Purpose: Tonsillotomy (TT) is a new and popular method with partial resection of the tonsils. Dexamethasone is often used during surgery for its anti-inflammatory, antiemetic, and analgesic properties. In this study, we aimed to explore the effect of systemic steroids use on postoperative vomiting, pain, and bleeding in TT.

Design: A randomized controlled trial.

Methods: We enrolled 240 children aged 2 to 18 years who had undergone TT or adenotonsillotomy at our center from July 2020 to July 2021. Dexamethasone or 0.9% normal saline was administered before the start of surgery. Postoperative hemorrhage, vomiting, and nausea were recorded and compared between groups.

Findings: The dexamethasone group had a 2.5% (3/119) rate of postoperative bleeding, while the rate was 1.6% (2/119) in the control group. No patients required multiple operations for control of bleeding. The degree of postoperative pain (2.1 ± 0.5 vs 3.4 ± 0.9) and the occurrence of postoperative nausea (21% vs 31.9%), as well as vomiting (15% vs 24.4%) in the dexamethasone group, was significantly lower compared with the placebo group.

Conclusions: The rate of postoperative bleeding between the dexamethasone group and the control group had no significant difference, suggesting the high safety of dexamethasone use in TT. Dexamethasone use in TT improved postoperative pain, nausea, and vomiting significantly.