An Observational Pragmatic Quality of Life Study on Paediatric
Tonsillectomy and Waiting for Surgery
Abstract
Introduction Paediatric tonsillectomy performed for sleep disordered
breathing or recurrent tonsillitis and the effects on a child’s quality
of life symptoms while waiting for surgery in an Australian public
health system have not previously been investigated. This study
investigated parental perceptions of the effects of tonsillectomy on
their child’s quality of life while awaiting tonsillectomy and following
surgery. Design, Setting and Participants An observational study was
undertaken at a tertiary Australian hospital. Parents of paediatric
patients (2 to 16 years of age) listed for tonsillectomy completed a
validated quality of life questionnaire (T—14 Paediatric Throat
Disorders Outcome Test) at the initial consultation, on day of surgery,
6 weeks post-operatively and 6 months post-operatively. T-14 scores were
compared using the Related-Samples Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. Results
Parents of 167 children participated in this study. There was a median
wait time of 174 days (IQR 108 – 347) from the initial consultation
until the day of surgery, with no significant change in median T-14
scores (35 [IQR 22 - 42] vs 36 [IQR 22 - 42]; n= 63; p
> 0.05). There was a significant decrease from
pre-operative T-14 scores to 6 weeks post-operatively (33.5 [IQR 22 -
42] vs 2 [IQR 0 - 5]; n = 160; p < 0.001), and this was
sustained with a minor improvement at 6 months post-operatively (6-week
2 [IQR 0 - 5] vs 6-month 0 [IQR 0 - 2]; n = 148; p <
0.001). Conclusion Paediatric tonsillectomy improves the patient’s
quality of life as perceived by their parents with a sustained benefit
in the long term. There is no improvement to the patient’s quality of
life while awaiting tonsillectomy, thus patient welfare can be improved
through reducing waiting times for surgery.