Clinical analysis of transnasal endoscopic low temperature plasma radiofrequency ablation in treatment of children with snoring

Objective To explore the efficacy and postoperative complications of transnasal endoscopic low temperature plasma radiofrequency ablation in the treatment of children with snoring.

Methods Clinical materials of 278 children with snoring were analyzed retrospectively, and they were divided into control group (n=128) and observation group (n=150) according to different operation methods. The control group was treated with adenoidectomy and bilateral tonsillectomy, while the observation group was treated with transnasal endoscopic low temperature plasma radiofrequency ablation. Perioperative indicators, the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score, inflammatory factors tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-8 (IL-8), stress response indicators malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione (GSH), ventilation function indicators apnea hyponea index (AHI), oxygen desaturation index (ODI), the longest apnea time (LAT) and nocturnal lowest blood oxygen saturation (LSaO₂), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) score and the incidence of complications were compared between the two groups.

Results In the observation group, the operation time, symptom relief time and hospital stay were significantly shorter than those in the control group, while the intraoperative bleeding volume was significantly less than that in the control group (P<0.05). The VAS scores of the observation group at 6, 24, 48 and 72 h after operation were significantly lower than those of the control group (P<0.05). At 3 days after operation, serum TNF-α, IL-4 and IL-8 levels in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P<0.05); at 24 hours after operation, serum MDA level in the observation group was significantly lower than that in the control group, while the levels of SOD and GSH were significantly higher than those in the control group (P<0.05); at 6 months after operation, AHI, ODI and LAT in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group, while the LSaO₂ was significantly higher than that in the control group (P<0.05); at 6 months after surgery, the PSQI score and incidence of complications in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P<0.05).

Conclusion Transnasal endoscopic low temperature plasma radiofrequency ablation can reduce the levels of inflammatory factors, alleviate stress response, improve ventilation function, improve quality of sleep in children with snoring, and its safety is relatively high.