These may come loose on their own, or they may need to be removed by a doctor. Your doctor may recommend a tonsillectomy to surgically remove your tonsils if you have chronic tonsillitis. As with chronic tonsillitis, a standard treatment for recurrent tonsillitis is a tonsillectomy.
Recurrent tonsillitis is often defined as:. Research from suggests that chronic and recurrent tonsillitis may be caused by biofilms in the folds of the tonsils. Biofilms are communities of microorganisms with increased antibiotic resistance that can cause repeated infections. A study examined the tonsils of children who had recurrent tonsillitis.
The study found that genetics may cause a poor immune response to group A streptococcus bacteria, which causes strep throat and tonsillitis. Learn more about the genetics behind recurrent tonsillitis. In rare cases, tonsillitis can cause the throat to swell so much that it causes trouble breathing.
If this happens, seek immediate medical attention. If you have tonsillitis, you may be contagious 24 to 48 hours before you develop any symptoms.
If you take antibiotics for bacterial tonsillitis, you should stop being contagious after 24 hours. You can develop tonsillitis if someone with the infection coughs or sneezes near you and you breathe in the droplets. If you touch a contaminated object, like a doorknob, and then touch your nose or mouth, you may also develop tonsillitis.
Being in contact with many people increases the risk of being exposed to tonsillitis. This is why school-age children often get the illness. It typically takes 2 to 4 days to develop symptoms after being exposed to someone with tonsillitis.
Find out how to reduce your risk of getting or spreading tonsillitis. Tonsils are your first line of defense against illness. They produce white blood cells that help your body fight infection. The tonsils combat bacteria and viruses that enter your body through your mouth and nose.
However, tonsils are also vulnerable to infection from these invaders. Tonsillitis can be caused by a virus, such as the common cold , or by a bacterial infection, such as strep throat. Viruses are the most common cause of tonsillitis.
The viruses that cause the common cold are often the source of tonsillitis, but other viruses can also cause it. These include:. Since the Epstein-Barr virus can cause both mononucleosis and tonsillitis, sometimes people with mono will develop tonsillitis as a secondary infection.
If you have viral tonsillitis, your symptoms may include coughing or a stuffy nose. Around 15 to 30 percent of tonsillitis cases result from bacteria. Your doctor can prescribe antibiotics to treat bacterial tonsillitis, though they may not be necessary.
Besides antibiotics, treatment is the same for most cases of viral and bacterial tonsillitis. Diagnosis is based on a physical examination of your throat. If antibiotics are prescribed, give these to your child as directed, and make sure you complete the full course of antibiotics. Even when tonsillitis is caused by bacteria strep throat , this is usually an infection that the child can recover from without the need for antibiotics.
Antibiotics do not improve the symptoms of tonsillitis, and most children have a sore throat for three to four days even if they do have treatment with antibiotics. Waiting to see if children will get better without antibiotics is helpful as it builds up immunity to the infection and makes it less likely that your child will get tonsillitis from that type of infection again. If your child is having recurrent infections it may be helpful to change the toothbrush after each infection, so that the tonsils will not be reinfected.
How can I prevent tonsillitis spreading to the other children in the family? Good hygiene reduces the chance of passing infections onto others. Good hygiene includes: regularly washing hands thoroughly, not sharing cups or cutlery, not letting toothbrushes touch, encouraging children to cough or sneeze into their elbow and using tissues instead of hankies. Teach your child to throw tissues into the bin as soon as they have used them and to wash their hands afterwards. Developed by The Royal Children's Hospital.
We acknowledge the input of RCH consumers and carers. To donate, visit www. This information is intended to support, not replace, discussion with your doctor or healthcare professionals. If left untreated, this kind of infection can cause complications like scarlet fever , middle ear infections and, occasionally, rheumatic fever. The tonsils are two pieces of tissue at the back of the mouth. The tonsils work as part of the immune system. She might also have:.
You should take your child to see a GP if your child:. One of the most common symptoms of Tonsillitis is a sore throat. As a parent, it may be hard to know when your child's sore throat is something more. Some other symptoms to look for include:. Treatment is typically dependent upon the cause of the infection. A physician will examine the throat and may include a throat culture to determine if the cause is a bacterial infection. If the physician determines the cause is bacterial, such as strep throat, your child may be prescribed antibiotics.
0コメント