Periostin Levels in Children With Adenoid Hypertrophy

Adenoid hypertrophy (AH) is a common condition in children and may result in nasal obstruction, mouth breathing, sleep-disordered breathing, recurrent upper respiratory symptoms, and other related clinical manifestations. Although allergic inflammation has been proposed as one of the mechanisms contributing to adenoid hypertrophy, the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying tissue enlargement are multifactorial and remain incompletely understood. Periostin is a matricellular protein involved in extracellular matrix organization and tissue remodeling and has been associated with inflammatory and remodeling processes in several airway diseases. However, limited information is available regarding the role of periostin in adenoid hypertrophy.

This prospective observational study was designed to investigate serum and local tissue periostin levels in children with adenoid hypertrophy. The study included children aged 2-8 years who were evaluated for adenoid hypertrophy. The adenoid hypertrophy group consisted of children with grade 3-4 adenoid hypertrophy who were scheduled for adenoidectomy based on their clinical condition. The control group consisted of children with grade 1 adenoid hypertrophy (0-25% nasopharyngeal obstruction) who had no symptoms attributable to adenoid enlargement.

Serum periostin levels were measured in both groups and compared between children with grade 3-4 and grade 1 adenoid hypertrophy. In children undergoing adenoidectomy, adenoid tissue samples were obtained during the clinically indicated surgical procedure. Paired samples of normal nasopharyngeal mucosa were also obtained from the posterior pharyngeal wall of the same patients. Periostin concentrations in adenoid tissue and paired normal nasopharyngeal mucosa were measured and compared using a within-subject paired analysis. No tissue samples were obtained from the control group.

The primary objective was to determine whether serum periostin levels differ between children with clinically significant adenoid hypertrophy and children with grade 1 adenoid hypertrophy without symptoms attributable to adenoid enlargement. A secondary objective was to evaluate whether periostin expression is increased locally in adenoid tissue compared with paired normal nasopharyngeal mucosa in the same patients.

The study was conducted prospectively after obtaining approval from the institutional ethics committee (Approval No. 8/8.11.04.18), and written informed consent was obtained from the legal guardians of all participants. The study was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.