Reader H. Tai, 30 years old, male, HCMC: I often have sore throats. I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with tonsillitis. I don't understand what this disease is and whether I need any surgical intervention. My throat often feels stuffy and I can see white patches in my throat.
MSc., MD., PhD. Le Nhat Vinh - Head of Interdisciplinary Department - Nam Saigon International General Hospital:
Hello H. Tai,
What is tonsillitis?
Purulent tonsillitis is a condition in which the palatine tonsils are inflamed, with white pus in the tonsil cavities. Purulent tonsillitis can occur in both acute and chronic tonsillitis, and can affect people of any age and any subject.
Symptoms of tonsillitis
Tonsillitis with pus has obvious symptoms such as: fever, sore throat and swelling, pus, white or yellow patches on the tonsils and bad smell. Tonsillitis with pus can lead to tonsil abscess if the inflammation spreads to the soft tissues causing: fever, difficulty swallowing, sore throat, earache, hoarseness, swollen tonsils...
Complications can occur if not treated early:
Based on the condition of frequent sore throat, feeling of obstruction in the throat and being able to see white patches, going to the doctor and being diagnosed with tonsillitis with pus, you need to treat early to avoid more dangerous complications, including: pharyngitis, otitis media, sinusitis, difficulty breathing, swelling of hands and feet, arthritis, glomerulonephritis, blood infection...
Treatment
Depending on the specific condition of the person with purulent tonsillitis, the specialist will decide on the appropriate treatment method by internal medicine or surgical intervention. Methods of treating purulent tonsillitis include:
- Medical treatment: Tonsillitis with pus is often treated with antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs, gargles and symptom-relieving drugs according to the dosage prescribed by a specialist.
- Surgical intervention: If medical treatment is not effective, tonsillitis recurs many times, or enlarged tonsils cause obstructive sleep apnea, a specialist will prescribe surgical intervention - tonsillectomy to completely treat the disease.
Tonsillectomy to treat tonsillitis with pus is a surgery with a duration of about 30-60 minutes, not causing much pain to the patient. The methods currently applied include: high frequency waves, lasers, electric scalpels, all of which are highly effective. At Nam Sai Gon International General Hospital, surgical instruments such as electric knives, coblators are being used...
The advice from Dr. Vinh for you H. Tai is that you should quickly go to the ENT department at a large, reputable hospital to have a specialist accurately diagnose your condition and provide appropriate treatment. If you have been treated with medication but the tonsillitis does not improve, you can learn about tonsillectomy surgery to completely treat it, improve your overall health and avoid dangerous complications.
Readers who need advice on health and disease prevention, do not hesitate to send questions to the Alo Doctor Consulting Inbox .
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