Tonsillitis means inflammation of the pharyngeal tonsils. In laymen’s terms, it is when your tonsils are swollen. The swelling or inflammation may also include other areas of the back of the throat, such as the lingual tonsils and the adenoids. The tonsils are lymph nodes or oval shaped masses of lymph gland tissue located on both sides of the throat. Tonsillitis refers to the infection of these tonsils.
Common characteristics or symptoms of tonsillitis involve pain in the throat and trouble swallowing. It can be diagnosed only by checking the tonsils using a tongue depressor and spatula, used in collecting a sample.
The sample collected will determine if the infection is viral or bacterial. The most common type of bacteria that causes tonsillitis is streptococcus. An example of a viral illness that can cause tonsillitis is glandular fever, but other viral infections may cause it as well. Examples are: herpes simplex virus, the measles virus, adenovirus, cytomegalovirus, Streptococcus pyogenes (GABHS) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV).
A bacterial infection will require antibiotics. Viral tonsillitis won’t respond to this kind of treatment.
Usually, tonsillitis is a self-limiting condition. This means it usually gets better without treatment, and normally there are no complications. It is a very common condition in children and young people, but it can happen to anyone.
Tonsillitis may also be transmitted from one person to another via social contact, like coughing, sneezing and nasal fluids.
Tonsillitis has many variations or kinds: acute, recurrent, and chronic tonsillitis and peritonsillar abscess.
People that complain of the following might have tonsillitis:
- Pain in the throat when swallowing
- Painful mouth opening
- Headache
- High temperatures or fever
- Loss of appetite
- Vomiting
- Pain in the abdominal area
- White or yellow spots of pus on the tonsils
- Swollen lymph glands under either side of the jaw
If the disease keeps coming back (or recurrent tonsillitis), a surgical removal of the tonsils is normally recommended. The procedure is called tonsillectomy.
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