Newly diagnosed 6 year old

My 6 year old received the results of her sleep test today and was given the diagnosis of mild/moderate obstructive sleep apnea. We were given so much information and I'm not sure what is the best choice for our family in terms of treatment. I was hoping someone with a similar treatment plan could tell me what choices they made and how well it worked for them.
We were told our options are allergy meds (Flonase and Singulair) and nose band (which the DR didn't seem to think would help but said we could try if we wanted)
Cpap machine... my only concern here is cost.
or palate expansion surgery... With this the Dr said it COULD change the shape of her face but wasn't clear about how much could/would change...

Apparently, her nose and the shape of her mouth are the culprits of her sleep apnea so removing her tonsils will not fix it.

I'm brand new in the world of sleep apnea... I never knew kids could get it until our dentist suggested she be tested...
Any and all information would be appreciated!!!

it sounds like you need to look into the op more, what is the best age to perform it, now or when she's finished growing.
resmed and respironics auto machines are available from $500 new on amazon and a lot less secondhand. people here can advise on a machine if you go down this path. it may be the simplest fix for now, if the decision process is going to take a while.

I think that the best approach is noninvasive therapy first, such as the Flonase, etc. There are cpap machines that are available used from reptuable dealers and used machines in the local for sale papers. I had extensive sinus and ear proplems as a child and noninvasive thinking kept me away from major surgery. Due to my history I have close friends that are ENT's. Surgery at best is iffy and at the age of 6 maturity is going to bring changes to the entire body. What maybe done to day may not work as your child matures. If you decide on the surgery I suggest that you find a really good pediatric ENT. I have found the best resources for finding good doctors at the major teaching hosipitals. I realize having a child with a problem like this causes great worry. Please exhaust all other methods before you let someone operate on your child. GET A SECOND OPINION Wish you the best of luck

I would want to know if it's really necessary to do palate expansion surgery. My daughter (and I) have a genetic disorder that includes a very high, arched and narrow palate. Her teeth were so crowded that they couldn't even loosen up and fall out, and X-rays showed her adult teeth still up beside her nose because there was no room for them to come down.

She had extensive orthodontia that included braces to expand her palate (her orthodontist used the Damon System https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0qy7p8JFQE which was easy and comfortable, worked quickly and well--no tooth extractions necessary) and something called a Herbst appliance to bring the lower mandible forward. http://bernsteinbraces.com/appliances/ BTW, her first phase of orthodontia started at about this age, so it's time to do some research. I got evaluations by 5 different orthodontists before I found one who did not propose extracting teeth.

I had her airway evaluated after all this treatment (spanning a few years and many thousands of dollars!*) and she has a nice, wide open airway now. WORTH EVERY PENNY!!! I will have to sleep with CPAP the rest of my life because I had retraction orthodontia as a child--they extracted teeth and pushed the rest back, resulting in further narrowing of my airway.

Not knowing your daughter's situation I don't know if orthodontia would be sufficient, but I urge you to get multiple opinions before choosing surgery. It's major surgery with a difficult recovery period and in your shoes I would want to be 1000% certain that's the best option.

In the meantime, she may still need CPAP to treat her apnea until the orthodontia or surgery is completed. I wouldn't rely on nasal steroids and breathe right strips alone without further testing to be certain that they are really treating her apnea (unlikely if she has a very narrow airway).

CPAP is not as daunting as it seems, it's non-invasive and painless. It makes a world of difference. So don't fear it. Many insurance plans will cover it, and if yours does not you may be able to get special funding from your state because she is a child.

*BTW, most orthodontists have some sort of financing plan. We did not pay it all at once, it was doable (and cost less than any new car).

I would go with Cpap until she's older - quite a bit older and able to really decide for herself based on many things she can research herself (even if with your help).

If for any reason something went wrong (and all I'm referring to now would be effectiveness of the surgery, not the usual risks involved with any surg) you'd kick yourself forever and for all we know, the way technology's going now, who knows what easier answers there may be in future.

Cpap can be a bit of a drag to adjust to, but it's always adjustable... but surgery's forever - you can't take it back. There's always time to go that route, but no way to undo it.

Herzog922 wrote:My 6 year old received the results of her sleep test today and was given the diagnosis of mild/moderate obstructive sleep apnea. We were given so much information and I'm not sure what is the best choice for our family in terms of treatment. I was hoping someone with a similar treatment plan could tell me what choices they made and how well it worked for them.
We were told our options are allergy meds (Flonase and Singulair) and nose band (which the DR didn't seem to think would help but said we could try if we wanted)
Cpap machine... my only concern here is cost.
or palate expansion surgery... With this the Dr said it COULD change the shape of her face but wasn't clear about how much could/would change...

Apparently, her nose and the shape of her mouth are the culprits of her sleep apnea so removing her tonsils will not fix it.

I'm brand new in the world of sleep apnea... I never knew kids could get it until our dentist suggested she be tested...
Any and all information would be appreciated!!!

Yeah my suggestion would be start with CPAP (many times insurance should cover it, if you are in the US try applying for Medicaid from your state they can often help pay for or fully cover stuff like this for children). You mentoed that it might be an issue with her nose and mouth with how young she is then she might grow out it, but just doing nothing is not good for her development.

how much overweight is the child
a good diet could help a lot

[/quote]

My child is tall and thin which is why i was super surprised she was even has OSA.

Many thin people have apnea due to anatomic reasons (narrow jaw, etc) and if anything, people who are overweight are now thought to have acquired at least some of it from apnea rather than the other way around.