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James M. Coticchia, MD; Romy D. Yun, BS; Lionel Nelson, MD; Jeffrey Koempel, MD

Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2006;132:425-430.

Objectives  To determine if temperature-controlled radiofrequency (TCRF) tonsil reduction and adenoidectomy (TCRF&A) and conventional tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy (T&A) are statistically similar in outcome and to compare morbidity between TCRF&A and conventional T&A.

Design  Randomized control trial.

Setting  Tertiary care children's hospital.

Participants  The study population comprised 23 patients aged 2.6 to 12.5 years with symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea, hypertrophic tonsils with no other areas of upper airway obstruction with the exception of hypertrophic adenoids, and a body mass index (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters) of less than 30.

Intervention  Temperature-controlled radiofrequency tonsil reduction (mean ± SD, 12.6 ± 1.5 ablations per patient and 994.68 ± 91.88 J per insertion) and adenoidectomy or traditional bovie T&A.

Main Outcome Measures  Primary outcomes were respiratory distress index and total volume reduction. Secondary outcomes include postoperative pain, daytime sleepiness, speech and swallowing problems, weight and diet, narcotic use, and analogue snoring scale.

Results  The respiratory distress index difference for TCRF&A was 5.63 vs 6.56 for standard T&A. On postoperative day 1 for the 13 patients who underwent TCRF&A, 0 reported severe pain, 11 (85%) had mild to moderate pain, and 2 (15%) had no pain. In the 10 patients who underwent standard T&A, 1 (10%) had severe pain and 9 (90%) had mild to moderate pain. By postoperative week 1, all TCRF&A patients experienced mild or no pain, whereas 1 (10%) of the standard T&A patients still had moderate pain. Mean visual analogue snore scores (0-10) 4 weeks after surgery were less than 1 for both groups. The mean ± SD weight loss at postoperative week 1 for TCRF tonsil reduction patients was 1.0 ± 3.5 lb (0.45 ± 1.58 kg) vs 4.6 ± 3.9 lb (2.07 ± 1.76 kg) for standard T&A patients. Return to normal diet at postoperative week 1 occurred in 11 TCRF&A patients (85%) and 0 standard T&A patients.

Conclusions  The respiratory distress indexes were similar for TCRF&A patients and standard T&A patients. In addition, there were similar analog snoring scales, decreased pain, and weight loss.

Author Affiliations: Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (Dr Coticchia), Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio (Ms Yun) Division of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, Good Samaritan Hospital, San Jose, Calif (Dr Nelson); and Division of Otolaryngology, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, and Department of Otolaryngology, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles (Dr Koempel). Dr Coticchia is now with the Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, Mich.

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