The Hemostatic Efficacy of Hydrogen Peroxide Irrigation to Control Intraoperative Bleeding in Adenoidectomy

Although adenoidectomy is generally accepted as a safe procedure, intraoperative hemorrhage is still the most common and potentially life-threating complication, especially in pediatric patients. We evaluated the clinical effect of intraoperative hydrogen peroxide irrigation with respect to hemostasis and operation times in pediatric adenoidectomy.

This was a prospective, randomized, double-blind study to investigate hydrogen peroxide solution in hemostasis in pediatric patients undergoing adenoidectomy. The patient, the surgeon, and the study nurse were blinded to the surgical technique used.

One hundred seventeen (56 males and 61 females) consecutive pediatric patients with a mean age of 5.46±1.19 years were included in the study. There were 58 patients in the hydrogen peroxide group (median age: 6 years, mean age: 5.62±1.28 years) and 59 patients in the control group (median age: 5 years, mean age: 5.31±1.07 years). No significant difference was observed between the two groups with respect to age (p=0.151), gender (p=0.646), or adenoid size (p=0.767). On the other hand, the difference between the groups with respect to operation and hemostasis times was found to be statistically significant (p<0.001 for both). The average operation times were 8.67±0.48 min in the hydrogen peroxide group and 12.30±0.69 min in the control group. The average hemostasis times were 3.67±0.27 min in the hydrogen peroxide group and 5.73±0.31 min in the control group.

Hydrogen peroxide solution can be effectively used in adenoidectomy for reducing intraoperative blood loss and for economic benefits.