Adenoidectomy

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Your child feels miserable. It’s an ear infection again. They can’t seem to shake them — or those colds.

You might think this has something to do with their ears. But there’s a good chance it’s because of two tiny patches of tissue at the back of their throat — their adenoids. Adenoids can grow way too big, making your child feel stuffy, have ear problems, breathe through their mouth and snore. They might also have trouble sleeping, sound nasally when they speak and even have bad breath. Who knew two little patches of tissue could cause so much trouble?

The good news is that we can remove them and help your child feel better right away.

At Cleveland Clinic, our skilled head and neck providers are experts at getting rid of enlarged adenoids by doing an adenoidectomy. Once these adenoids are gone, your child (and you) should feel better and breathe easier.

Why Choose Cleveland Clinic for an Adenoidectomy?

Caring approach:

Feeling stressed about your child having surgery? It’s only natural. But you can rest assured knowing we’ll treat your child like one of our own — with care and compassion. Our experts will make sure to give you all the information you need to know what’s going on every step of the way. Meet our team.

Comprehensive treatment:

Our otolaryngologists (head and neck experts) diagnose and treat all sorts of ear, nose and throat problems every day. We know how to pinpoint your child’s issues and work together to come up with treatment that will work best for your child — and their adenoids.

National recognition:

Cleveland Clinic is a trusted healthcare leader. We're recognized in the U.S. and throughout the world for our expertise and care.

Virtual visits:

While some appointments need to be in-person, others can be done online. When you schedule virtual visits with your providers, you and your child can talk to them from home using a smartphone, tablet or computer.

Adenoidectomy Consultation at Cleveland Clinic

Healthy adenoid glands help kids fight germs and stop infections while they’re young. These patches of tissue usually start to shrink around age 5 and typically disappear by age 7. But when adenoids work too hard fighting frequent infections or allergies, they can grow too big and cause problems.

When your child comes to Cleveland Clinic for an adenoidectomy consultation and treatment, they’ll get care from a team of providers, which might include:

Otolaryngologists, head and neck specialists who treat ear, nose and throat problems.
Advanced practice providers like certified nurse practitioners and physician assistants.
Anesthesiologists, who give your child anesthesia to help them sleep during surgery.
Audiologists, who test your child’s hearing.
Radiologists, who use imaging tests like CT scans, MRI or X-rays to help with diagnosis and treatment plans.

We may do an X-ray to check what your child’s adenoids look like and how big they are. We might also do some other tests. These could include:

Your child’s providers might try medicines like antibiotics, antihistamines or corticosteroids to reduce inflammation and help shrink your child’s adenoids. But if these drugs don’t work, your child may need an adenoidectomy. Some children may have a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy together.

Providers Who Perform Adenoidectomy

Locations

Schedule an adenoidectomy at one of the following locations in Northeast Ohio and in Florida.

Getting an Adenoidectomy at Cleveland Clinic

If your child needs an adenoidectomy, your providers will make sure you know what to expect every step of the way — before, during and after surgery. When your child gets an adenoidectomy, they probably won’t have to stay overnight in the hospital and can go home the same day. We’ll make sure you have instructions on how to help them feel better while they recover at home.

Before surgery, your child will get general anesthesia so they won’t feel pain or be aware of what’s happening. They’ll be asleep the whole time.

Once asleep, your child’s surgeon removes their adenoids, which usually takes about 30 minutes. When surgery is complete, your child will go to a recovery area while the anesthesia wears off. While they’re there, we’ll check on them to make sure they’re able to breathe, cough and swallow without problems.

At home, don’t be surprised if your child has a bad sore throat or feels stuffy for the first few days. But, as they recover from their adenoidectomy, you can expect your child to breathe easier, sleep better and have fewer ear infections.

Taking the Next Step

When you hear your child might need surgery, you’ll probably feel a bit stressed out. We get it. Surgery can sound scary — but an adenoidectomy is a common operation that our head and neck experts do daily. They’ll take time to listen to your concerns, answer your questions and walk you through each step so you know what will happen. We want you to feel comfortable knowing how this surgery will help your child feel better quickly — and greatly improve their days and nights.