The Association between Adenotonsillectomy and Frequency of Vaso-Occlusive Crises in Patients with Sickle Cell Disease

Hani Z Marzouki; Lujain K Abdalwassie; Mawaddah A Tallab; Talal Al-Khatib; Osama Y Safdar; Fatma Alzharani; Fayza Alsiny; Nada J Farsi

doi:10.1007/s12070-021-02696-5

The Association between Adenotonsillectomy and Frequency of Vaso-Occlusive Crises in Patients with Sickle Cell Disease

Indian J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2022 Dec;74(Suppl 3):5499-5505. doi: 10.1007/s12070-021-02696-5. Epub 2021 Aug 22.

Authors

Hani Z Marzouki¹, Lujain K Abdalwassie¹, Mawaddah A Tallab², Talal Al-Khatib¹, Osama Y Safdar³, Fatma Alzharani⁴, Fayza Alsiny⁴, Nada J Farsi⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, , King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, 21441 Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Dermatology, King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
³ Pediatric Nephrology Center of Excellence, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Pediatric Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Department of Dental Public Health, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Sickle cell disease (SCD) typically manifests in early childhood as attacks of pain known as vaso-occlusive crises. Infection and hypoxemia have been linked with these recurrent episodes and with prolonged hospitalization in SCD patients. However, adenoids and tonsils as sources of infection and causes of hypoxemia have not been adequately investigated in association with vaso-occlusive crises in SCD. To assess the association between adenotonsillectomy and frequency of vaso-occlusive crisis in SCD patients who underwent this procedure at our Hospital, and between adenotonsillectomy and frequency of blood transfusions and emergency department and intensive care unit admissions. We used medical record data to conduct a retrospective review of SCD patients who underwent adenoidectomy and/or tonsillectomy between 2005 and 2017. Eligible subjects were assessed for frequency of vaso-occlusive crises, blood transfusions, and emergency department and intensive care unit admissions. Using the Wilcoxon signed rank test, we compared the frequencies of each outcome preoperatively and 1, 3, 5, and 10 years postoperatively. Of 524 records reviewed, 40 eligible patients were included in the study. Minimal reduction was observed in the frequency of vaso-occlusive crisis episodes within 1 and 3 years after adenotonsillectomy (p = 0.337 and p = 0.549, respectively). Although the 5- and 10-year postoperative vaso-occlusive crisis frequency tended to be higher than that in the preoperative period, none of the results reached statistical significance. The number of emergency department admissions showed a statistically significant increase 3 years postoperatively compared with that in the preoperative period (P = 0.043). There were no statistically significant differences in perioperative blood transfusion frequency or number of intensive care unit admissions in any period. Adenotonsillectomy in SCD patients does not seem to be related to the frequency of vaso-occlusive crises, blood transfusions, or emergency department or intensive care unit admissions. Prospective studies with larger sample sizes are recommended to further evaluate these findings.

Keywords: Adenotonsillectomy; Sickle cell disease; Vaso-occlusive crisis.