Objective: To verify children's acceptance of nasal fiber optic examination in a school setting and to evaluate hypertrophy of adenoid vegetation and to determine its prevalence in this population.
Method: A survey was performed of a representative (n = 368) sample of school age children at elementary school (aged 6 to 13 years old) who had been subjected to fiber optic examination, in Aracaju (SE), Brazil. All students were subjected to the same study protocol, carried out at school and with no need for sedation or restraint.
Results: All of the children tolerated the nasal fiber optic examination well, making possible a good evaluation of pharynx and nasal cavities. The prevalence of adenoid hypertrophy grade I was 50.6%, of grade II 35.1% and of grade III 14.3%. Grades II and III hypertrophy were related to an increase in obstructive symptoms.
Conclusion: As this study performed in a school setting demonstrates, nasal fiber optic examination can be performed with excellent tolerance in settings other than hospitals and outpatient clinics, indicating that its usage could be increased and made available for an extended range of populations. The prevalence of adenoid hypertrophy in Aracaju is not comparable with prevalence rates observed in earlier studies because it this was a study of children without respiratory symptoms.