Almond removal in children can promote later illnesses

Increase in the risk of diseases after almond removal?

Researchers have now found that removing tonsils as a child triples your chances of getting colds and other respiratory infections later in life. In addition, those affected are also more susceptible to a variety of infectious diseases.

The researchers at the University of Melbourne found in their current research that the risk of further illnesses in the rest of life greatly increased when affected people were removed as a child's tonsils. The physicians published the results of their study in the English language journal "JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery".

When almonds are removed during childhood, this has a massive impact on the risk of various diseases in adulthood. (Image: Henrie - fotolia)

Patients also become more likely to suffer from allergies

The removal of tonsils in infancy also increases the likelihood of allergic diseases and skin and eye diseases, say the Australian experts. This is probably because this tissue plays an important role in the early immune system by detecting and blocking the entry of bacteria and viruses into the lungs and throat, the researchers add. Almonds are often removed from children if they interfere with breathing or if they repeatedly cause tonsillitis and / or otitis media.

Risk for diseases was sometimes massively increased

The researchers suggest that sufferers should consider alternatives to tonsillitis surgery. The increased risk after surgery was significant in many diseases. For some diseases, the risk was even greatly increased, say the experts.

Data from 1.2 million children were evaluated

For the study, the physicians analyzed the health records of 1.2 million Danish children between 1979 and 1999. Of the participants, 60,400 had a tonsillectomy, an adenoidectomy or a combined operation behind them. The same subjects were examined years later (after their 30 years of age) again. Patients who had a tonsillectomy during childhood tripled their risk of upper respiratory tract infections such as colds, runny nose, and bronchitis compared to those who kept their tonsils. The risk of asthma and pneumonia was also increased by about 50 percent in the operated patients, the researchers add.

Study allows better understanding of the immune tissue

The results show an increased risk of long-term illnesses after an operation of the tonsils. In addition, the study provides a better understanding of the function of the immune tissue and the lifelong consequences of removing the tonsils, explains study author Dr. med. Shaun Byars from the University of Melbourne. The removal of adenoids, the tissue at the back of the maxilla beneath the nasal cavity, doubles the risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which includes emphysema and asthma. However, these diseases are much rarer than respiratory infections. Only 0.25 percent of the total population suffer from some form of COPD in their 30s, so the impact is less relevant, say the doctors.

Should key components of the immune system be removed?

The removal of key components of the body's immune system affects susceptibility to respiratory infections, which is not really surprising, the authors explain. However, the experts also noted an increased susceptibility to 28 different types of diseases, including parasitic infections, skin diseases and eye discomfort. Thirty-seven percent of these were more frequently observed in patients with almond or adenoid surgery. The results of the study allow people to learn more about the function of the immune tissue and the lifelong consequences of their removal, the scientists add, especially in sensitive times when the body is still developing. (As)