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Objective: To evaluate how pediatric indications for tonsillectomy or adenotonsillectomy relate to gender, race/ethnicity, and age. Methods: Included consecutive pediatric patients who underwent tonsillectomy or adenotonsillectomy from a single tertiary academic institution between 2012 and 2019. Logistic regression analysis was used to measure association between the indication for tonsillectomy and the demographic variables gender, race/ethnicity, and age. Results: Of the 1106 children included in this study, 53% were male and 47% were female. Half of the children were White, 40% were African American, 6% were Hispanic and 4% were other. The most common indication for surgery was upper airway obstruction alone (66%), followed by obstruction and infection (22%), and recurrent infections (12%). We found that male gender (OR 1.59, 95% CI 1.24-2.04), African American race (OR 2.76, 95% CI 2.08-3.65), and younger age were associated with greater odds of presenting with upper airway obstruction as the indication for tonsillectomy. Conversely, male gender (OR 0.63, 95% CI 0.44-0.92), African American race (OR 0.4, 95% CI 0.26-0.61), and younger age were associated with lower odds of presenting with recurrent infection as the indication for tonsillectomy. Conclusions: Male gender, African American race, and young age are risk factors for tonsillar surgery due to airway obstruction. Female gender, White race, and older age are risk factors for tonsillar surgery due to recurrent throat infections. Level of Evidence: 3.
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BACKGROUND: Our objective was to determine the effect of post-diagnosis aspirin use on survival in veterans with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study of 584 veterans with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma treated at the Washington DC VA Medical Center between 1995 and 2015. Charts were queried for clinical-pathologic data, aspirin prescriptions, and outcome. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to determine overall survival (OS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) among aspirin users and nonusers. RESULTS: A total of 329 patients met inclusion criteria. Primary subsites included oropharynx (n = 143), larynx (n = 105), oral cavity (n = 62), and hypopharynx (n = 19). Eighty-four patients were aspirin users (25.5%). Aspirin users demonstrated significantly better 3-year OS and DSS (78.6% and 88.1%) compared to nonaspirin users (OS: 55.9% and DSS: 70.2%; P = .0003 and P = .0019, respectively). On multivariate analysis, aspirin use remained independently associated with improved survival. CONCLUSION: Aspirin use following diagnosis and curative treatment of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma is associated with improved OS and DSS.