Comparative study of incidence of secondary hemorrhage and severity of post operative pain between conventional adenoidectomy and debrider adenoidectomy

Background: Adenoidectomy is one of the most commonly performed surgical procedures in children. Conventional curettage adenoidectomy remains widely practiced; however newer techniques such as endoscopic microdebrider adenoidectomy offer improved visualization and precision. Despite these advancements, comparative evidence regarding postoperative pain and secondary hemorrhage between these techniques remains limited.

Objective: To compare postoperative pain and the incidence of secondary hemorrhage between conventional curettage adenoidectomy and microdebrideradenoidectomy.

Methods: This prospective comparative study was conducted at a tertiary care center from March 2024 to June 2025 and included 50 patients aged 3–18 years with chronic adenoiditis. Patients were allocated into two groups: Group A - conventional adenoidectomy (n=25) and Group B - microdebrideradenoidectomy (n=25). Postoperative pain was assessed using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) on postoperative days 0, 3, and 5. Patients were monitored for secondary hemorrhage up to postoperative day 7. Statistical analysis was performed using appropriate tests, with p<0.05 considered significant.

Results: Baseline characteristics were comparable between the two groups. Pain scores showed a significant reduction over time in both groups. However, there was no statistically significant difference in postoperative pain between the conventional and microdebrider groups at any time point (p>0.05). No cases of secondary hemorrhage were observed in either group.

Conclusion: Both conventional curettage and microdebrider-assisted adenoidectomy demonstrate comparable outcomes in terms of postoperative pain and secondary hemorrhage. The choice of technique may therefore be based on surgeon preference, expertise, and resource availability.