Correlation of Site and Size of Adenoid Hypertrophy and Middle Ear Effusion.

The adenoid, or the pharyngeal tonsil, is an antibody producing lymphatic tissue located in the superior part of the nasopharynx posteriorly, near the choana and opening of the eustachian tube. They are present from the seventh month of gestation and typically grow until age 5. Adenoid tissue can be found extending to the eustachian tube opening and the fossa of Rosenmuller. The fossa of Rosenmuller is on the lateral wall of the nasopharynx, just behind the cartilage of the eustachian tube.

It grows during childhood, appearing largest in size in children between 3 and 7 years of age, and begins to regress in adolescence. Children younger than 7 years are more prone to symptomatic effects of enlarged adenoid due to the relatively smaller volume of the nasopharynx and choanal opening. The prevalence of AH (pathologic enlargement) follows physiologic growth and regression pattern of the adenoid. An enlarged adenoid may block breathing and be a cause of snoring or obstructive sleep apnea. Adenoid hypertrophy can also lead to comorbid conditions such as serous otitis and sinusitis. AH is higher in frequency in children with allergic diseases, with the most common allergen being house dust. Other risk factors noted for developing AH include cigarette smoke exposure and allergic rhinitis. In a child with these risk factors, AH should be a consideration during a routine examination. Assessing adenoidal size can be achieved initially by lateral neck radiography (LNR) and assessing adenoid-nasopharyngeal ratio (A/N ratio) which is one of the most important and most widely used criteria. Although these methods are inexpensive and available, they have limited role in the exact assessment of areas such as the ears. Flexible nasal endoscopy, where adenoid size grading is on a scale of I to IV identifies the percentage of the posterior choana blocked by the adenoid tissue, with grade IV representing the highest level of obstruction.

AH influence on the pathogenesis of OME is two-fold: it may mechanically obstruct the Eustachian tube, and its vegetation may serve as a reservoir of biofilm forming bacteria causing retrograde infections towards the Eustachian tube and the middle ear.

Otitis media with effusion (OME) is a disease defined by persistence of serous or mucous fluid in middle ear without signs of an acute infection. It is amongst the most common pediatric diseases and the most common cause of hearing loss in children. It is estimated that more than 50% of children are diagnosed with OME by the age of 1 year, and up to 90% of children by the time they have reached school age.

Although the exact pathogenesis of OME is not clearly understood, it is generally resulted from lymphoid tissue overgrowth in nasopharynx, chronic sinus infection, and allergies.