Introduction
Tonsillitis
is an infection or inflammation of the tonsils. The tonsils
are balls of lymphatic tissue on both sides of the throat, above
and behind the tongue. They are part of the immune system, which
helps the body fight infection.
Tonsillitis
often goes away on its own after four to ten days by taking
proper rest and treatment.
Causes
Most
often, tonsillitis is caused by a virus. Less often, it is caused
by the same bacteria that cause strep throat. In rare cases,
a fungus or a parasite can cause it.
Tonsillitis
is spread through the air in droplets when an infected person
breathes, coughs, or sneezes. You may then become infected after
breathing in these droplets or getting them on your skin or
on objects that come in contact with your mouth, nose, or eyes.
Symptoms
The
main symptom of tonsillitis is a sore throat. The throat and
tonsils. usually look red and swollen. The tonsils may have
spots on them or pus that covers them completely or in patches.
Fever is also common.
If
you feel like you have a cold, with symptoms such as runny and
stuffy nose, sneezing, and coughing, a virus is most likely
the cause.
If
you have a sore throat plus a sudden and severe fever and swollen
lymph nodes, but you do not have symptoms of a cold, the infection
is more likely caused by bacteria. This means you need to see
a doctor and probably need a strep test.
Diagnosis
Your
doctor will look at your throat to see if you have red and swollen
tonsils with spots or sores. These signs can mean you have tonsillitis.
Your
doctor may do a rapid strep test along with a throat culture.
These will show whether the tonsillitis is caused by streptococcus
bacteria.
Your
doctor may also ask about past throat infections. If you get
tonsillitis often, it may affect the choice of treatment.
You
may have a test for mononucleosis if your doctor thinks that
you have mono.
Treatment
Tonsillitis
caused by a virus will usually go away on its own. Treatment
focuses on helping you feel better. You may be able to ease
throat pain by gargling with salt water, drinking warm tea,
and using other home treatments. Over-the-counter pain medicines,
such as acetaminophen, may also be used by adults and children
age six months and older. But do not give Aspirin to anyone
age twenty or younger. It is linked to a serious disease called
Reye's syndrome.
If
your tonsillitis is caused by strep, you need treatment with
antibiotics. Antibiotics can help prevent rare but serious problems
caused by strep and can control the spread of infection.
As
a rule, doctors only advise surgery to remove tonsils when there
are serious problems with the tonsils. These include infections
that happen again and again, or long-lasting infections that
do not get better after treatment and get in the way of daily
activities. You and your doctor can decide if surgery is the
right choice after a careful review of your overall health.
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