Clinical Efficiency of Adenoidectomy Using Microdebrider

Background and Objectives:Remnant adenoid tissue after adenoidectomy or immoderate procedure result in various com- plications such as bleeding, damage to the mucosa of posterior nasopharyngeal wall or orifice of Eustachian tube. The purpose of this paper is to compare conventional adenoidectomy with microdebrider-assisted adenoidectomy based on postoperative outcome and intraoperative effectiveness. Materials and Method:We performed a prospective study comparing thirty cases of adenoidectomy using conventional approach with fifteen cases of transoral microdebrider adenoidectomy using an indirect laryngeal mirror. Skull lateral radiographs and a symptom scale were used to evaluate preoperative and postoperative states. Results:There was no significant difference in the improvement of symptoms and postoperative outcome between the conventional group and the microdebrider adenoidectomy group. However, it was found that more adenoid tissue could be removed in the microdebrider group. Postoperative nasopharyngeal endoscopic views revealed that microdebrider removed adenoid tissue precisely and preserved the posterior nasopharyngeal wall better when compared to the conventional group. Conclusion:Compared with the conventional procedure, adenoidectomy using the transoral microdebrider with an indirect laryngeal mirror was similar in achieving symptom improvement and postoperative outcomes, but removed more adenoid tissue with higher precision. From this study, we suggest that using microdebrider with indirect laryngeal mirror is another valuable method of adenoidectomy in the aspect of precision. (Korean J Otolaryngol 2002;45:164-8