Pediatric Aerodigestive Center

Pediatric Aerodigestive Center of Tampa Bay at Brandon Regional Hospital

The Pediatric Aerodigestive Center of Tampa Bay is a multi-disciplinary team of specialized physicians caring for kids with airyway and upper gastrointestinal tract disorders. The team collaborates to diagnose and treat disorders that can affect a child’s ability to breathe, swallow or eat properly.

Team Approach

• Only pediatric aerodigestive program in the Tampa Bay region
• Team of physicians includes gastroenterologists, otolaryngologists, pediatric anesthesia, pulmonologists, and experienced clinicians
• Multi-specialty procedures performed to provide diagnosis and treatment
• Reduces the need for multiple sedations and anesthesia

What We Treat

• Chronic aspiration
• Chronic wheezing
• Difficulty swallowing
• Reflux
• Stridor
• Unexplained cough

Procedures

• Adenoidectomy
• Bronchoscopy
• EGD with 23 hour probe
• Esophageal impedance-pH study
• High resolution esophageal manometry
• Modified barium swallow study
• Mryingotomy
• Triple endoscopy

Plan for an Overnight Stay

• Most aerodigestive patients will need to spend at least one night at the Pediatric Center
• Parents and guardians are welcome to stay with their child and overnight sleeper chairs are available

Child Life Specialist

• Certified child life specialist works with child to help them cope with stress
• Educates patients and reduces anxiety
• Uses developmentally appropriate materials and play activities

About the Pediatric Center at Brandon Regional Hospital

• 15 bed Inpatient Unit
• 8 bed Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
• Pediatric Emergency Room
• Level III NICU

What We Treat

Chronic aspiration

Chronic aspiration means your child is breathing foreign objects into their airways. Usually they are breathing food, saliva, or stomach contents when they swallow, vomit or experience heartburn. This is common with children who have trouble swallowing or controlling their tongue.

Chronic wheezing

Chronic wheezing is a high-pitched whistling sound made when a child breathes. It is common in children with asthma and children who have allergies, but can also be an indication of more serious medical conditions.

Difficulty swallowing

Difficulty swallowing is also referred to as dysphagia. Some causes of dysphagia are inflammation of the esophagus and scleroderma, which is a condition that causes tissues of the esophagus to become hard and narrow. Dysphasia can also be caused by esophageal tumors, masses on the esophagus and certain problems with the nervous system such as multiple sclerosis and muscular dystrophy.

Reflux

Symptoms of reflux include heartburn, burping and spitting up. Children with reflux have frequent regurgitation or vomiting after meals and often cry or are irritable after eating. They may also refuse to eat or only eat small amounts.

Stridor

Stridor is a high-pitched wheezing sound caused by an airway that is blocked. Causes of stridor include an object that is blocking the airway, swelling in the throat, trauma to the airway, croup (viral respiratory infection), bronchitis (inflammation of airways leading to lungs), tonsillitis (inflammation of lymph nodes at back of mouth and throat), and epiglottis (inflammation of tissue covering the windpipe).

Unexplained cough

An unexplained chronic cough can be caused by asthma, pertussis or whooping cough, cystic fibrosis, acid reflux and a blocked airway.

Procedures

Adenoidectomy

Adenoidectomy is a surgical procedure to remove a child’s adenoids—a mass of lymphoid tissue located behind the nasal passages. Adenoids are removed when they are infected and remain enlarged, leading to trouble breathing, snoring, sinus infections or other problems.

Bronchoscopy

Bronchoscopy is a procedure that allows a doctor to look at a child’s airway. The doctor uses a bronchoscope to examine the child’s throat, larynx, trachea and lower airways.

EGD with 23 hour probe

Esophageal impedance-pH study

And esophageal impedance study is a test to determine whether contents from the stomach are coming up into the esophagus. The test evaluates acid and non-acid gastroesophageal reflux.

High resolution esophageal manometry

An esophageal manometry is a procedure in which a small flexible tube is placed into the nose and passed into the esophagus. It's used to figure out how well your child's esophagus is working by measuring the pressure and coordination of the esophageal muscles. By gauging the strength of these muscles, doctors may learn more about your child's symptoms, like difficulty swallowing, chest pain or gastroesophageal reflux.

Modified barium swallow study

A modified barium swallow study is a procedure where a child ingest foods and liquids containing barium sulfate, a contrast dye that sharply outlines your mouth, throat, and esophagus on x-ray film. Using real-time x-rays, or fluoroscopy, a physician observes the movement of the barium on a monitor. This helps the physician determine the cause of difficulty swallowing.

Myringotomy

A myringotomy is a procedure where a tiny incision is made in the eardrum to relieve pressure caused by excessive fluid buildup.

Triple endoscopy

A triple endoscopy is a procedure where a flexible tube with a camera on the end is inserted through the nose into the airway to directly visualize the larynx, bronchi, and esophagus.