Jacob is 8yo and has mild obstructive and central sleep apnea that has not improved with T&A.  He has GERD that has not improved with medication.  ENT recommends base of tongue coblation and lingual tonsillectomy.  Sleep specialist recommends CPAP and doesn't disagree with surgery but says he may need CPAP anyway d/t central apneas.   2nd opinion with ENT says these treatments will not help GERD and may not make much difference in the reduction of the obstruction,  (he did not see the pictures from the bronchoscopy), and if Jacob may need CPAP anyway then just do that.  My problem with CPAP is Jacob has major anxiety that we are already treating.  He especially hates anyone to look, touch his ears throat etc.  The 1st ENT thinks relieving the obstructiion may help the Gerd, the sleep specialist had cited a report that CPAP has been shown to improve GERD.  The ENT didn't think Jacob would tolerate the CPAP.    Pediatrician is not sure whether either of these options are worth the torture Jacob would have to endure to treat mild apneas.  The sleep specialist beleives mild apneas should be treated becasue of the cognitive effects sleep apnea can cause. Help,  none of these professionals have the same answer.

I have delayed my answer to you, simply because I was trying to wrap my brain around all that you said and to see what would happen with my son and his c-pap trial.

I can't tell you what decision to make, but based on what you have said and what we have experienced with our son in the last 2 weeks, here are our thoughts:

Skip the surgery...for now.  Try c-pap and see what happens over a couple of months time.  Our son hates to have things on his face or to touch his body during the night, which the hose does a lot of, but after only a couple of nights of fighting, he now reminds us to turn it on because he feels so much better during the day.  It is certainly worth a shot and a lot less invasive than the surgery. If it doesn't work, then be willing to at least talk about surgical possibilities.  I've found my son's best doctors are the ones with Plans A, B, C, and D in place and ready to go when the first, second, or third one fail. It's like a big game of "choose your own adventure".  Lay it out to his ENT, sleep specialist and pediatrician...If you can get 2 of the 3 to sign on with you on a plan then I'd run with it.  

Please don't hesitate to keep asking questions...It helps to get input from people who have been there and done that and don't even have the glory of a t-shirt to prove it!

Tiffany...Mom to Isaac...My awesome 3 year old "hose head" and to Esther Rose..My beautiful angel baby who loves to sleep and eat and roll and sleep and eat and roll...