Early stage impacts of tonsillectomy on immune functions of children

Evaluation of long-term impacts of tonsillectomy on immune functions of children: A follow-up study

“…The previously reported [7] study which involved 37 children (21 girls and 16 boys, 5-9 years, mean age 7.29 AE 2.6 years) were targeted for this longterm study. They were tonsillectomized in Firat University Medical Faculty Department of ENT, and the short-term (1 month after tonsillectomy) impact of tonsillectomy on immune systems of these patients was reported [7].…”

“…It is speculated that tonsillectomy negatively affect the immune system in children. On the other hand, many studies indicate that tonsillectomy seems to have no counterproductive effect on the immune system [7,8].…”

The Influence of Tonsillectomy on Total Serum Antibody Levels

“…However, IgA and IgM did not show significant differences in this study, lasting 3 months. Similarly, Kaygusuz et al [5] found a significant decrease of serum IgG, IgA and IgM 1 month post-operation compared to preoperation, although the post-operation levels did not differ significantly from those of the control group. However, the same research group found a different outcome when performing a long-term follow-up study [18] collecting data from 54 months posttonsillectomy.…”

“…Although tonsillectomy has been performed for many years, some believe that the procedure increases the patient's risk of infection as it involves removal of major parts of lymphoid tissue where B and T cells can be stimulated and differentiated, consequently impairing both humoral and cellular immunity [4,5]. Conversely, recurrent tonsillitis leads to fibrosis and atrophy in the tonsils, hence decreasing the amount of lymphoid tissue [6,7].…”

Effects of adenotonsillectomy on humoral immunity

“…Previous studies have reported that changes that occur in the immune system following adenotonsillectomy are not significant enough to cause increase in the frequency of diseases. [11][12][13] A conservative approach towards removal of tonsils and adenoids has been advocated by some authors despite the immunological activity of chronically hypertrophied adenotonsillar tissue being low. They have taken into consideration their immunological role prior to the surgery especially in children.…”