Tonsils are a vital part of your child’s immune system but sometimes they can truly be obstructive of their daily activities in the event that they get severely infected. Tonsils act as the first line of defense against bacteria and viruses, trapping the germs at the back of the mouth while our immune system gets to work. Generally, a painful and sore throat occurs followed by a high fever during a case of tonsillitis.

Common indicators of severe tonsillitis are really red or puss covered glands at the back of the throat. In such cases, tiny white spots can be fairly visible at the back portion of the mouth, and on the sides of the inner-mouth walls near the throat opening. The glands (also known as “lymph nodes”) become enlarged and cause eating difficulty (and in some cases trouble with breathing as well). Most children who suffer from tonsillitis may have their voices temporarily altered due to the swollen glands and also have restless sleep due to high fevers caused by the infection and also constricted airways. In some cases, breathing sometimes stops for a few seconds during sleep.

While most cases of tonsillitis do not last more than a few days and is more of a nuisance than being dangerous, there are a few things you need to do in order to avoid further health complications with your child. First of all, give your child paracetamol to keep the fever under control and if she runs an extremely high temperature, get her to the doctor immediately. During this period of recovery she might not have much of an appetite, so be sure your child drinks plenty of fluid to keep her body hydrated (fevers cause plenty of fluid loss due to sweating). During this time, feeding your child oil-free and soft foods like yogurt are a good idea, and avoid any deep fried food like potato chips as they can cause further irritation to the throat and make her even more miserable than she already is. Tonsillitis can be contagious and may spread through fluid exchange, so avoid kissing your child or sharing drinks or food during this period.

In general, the symptoms only lasts for a few days at most but if it persists, you will need to take your child to your doctor. For severe cases of tonsillitis, your doctor will normally prescribe the child with a dose of antibiotics (for bacterial-based infections). The treatment will thereby run its course for about a week wherein your child should be well recovered. It is important that your child completes his or her dose of antibiotics however or it might not be quite as effective the next time another dose is required. If the symptoms persists after this time, your doctor will either prescribe a stronger dose of antibiotics or suggest other alternatives such as surgical removal of the tonsils, and this procedure is called “tonsillectomy”. The doctor will need to run a few tests to determine if it is absolutely necessary because tonsillectomies are expensive and most children do not require it. As they grow older their condition generally improves.

Antibiotics are only good if it’s a bacterial infection however. If the cause is viral, then there is nothing that can be done about it. Be sure your child gets plenty of rest and fluids and let his immune system take care of the rest. In the case of chronic tonsillitis, the doctor might recommend your child have his tonsils removed via minor surgery. This is necessary in some cases as antibiotics lose their potency over long periods of time the bacteria can become immune to the drug as well.

In some cases, some children might have reoccurring bouts of infection in their throats and even with several treatments of antibiotics, the tonsils keep getting infected. Since it’s not advisable to be on powerful antibiotics for the long-term, your doctor may suggest your child to have minor tonsillectomy surgery which can be expensive and includes a rather painful 2 week recovery where . This surgery only benefits kids with chronic infections, whereby he or she suffers severe tonsillitis at least 7 times within a 12 month period. Most children do not require this and do grow out of it. Tonsil removal surgery is an absolute last resort and is a rather quick procedure lasting only about 20 minutes. Your child will be under a dose of anesthesia and will not feel the slightest pain. However when the anesthesia wears off swallowing becomes excruciating because of the open wound and will take about three weeks for a full recovery. In the meantime he or she may only eat foods that are easy to swallow.

While the tonsillectomy is a quick procedure, your child might or might not be required to be hospitalized overnight depending on his or her condition and if the anesthesia has worn off or not. Be prepared as your child might cry a lot because of the exposed flesh in the wounded area – it will really hurt to swallow anything, even liquids. It will take approximately 7 to 10 days for the pain to subside.

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