Tonsillitis can be recurrent on certain occasions, especially during the cooler months. While this is a common condition that can be passed off for a bad cold, you should know how to determine tonsillitis when it seems to be persistent. Recurrent bouts with tonsillitis can result in other health complications, such as peritonsillar abscess, and the discomfort that the inflammation happening inside your body can affect your quality of life. This article elaborates more in this topic and provides guidance on why you need to see an ENT specialist in Singapore as soon as possible when you suspect that your tonsillitis has become chronic.
Taking a closer look at the tonsils
As a child, you may have experienced being asked by an to open your mouth wide and see the back of your throat whenever you feel sick. This is done to check if your tonsils are red, swollen, and inflamed, which are obvious signs of tonsillitis. The tonsils play a critical role in protecting your body from infections. They are a part of the lymphatic system and the immune system’s first line of defense against harmful pathogens that you may have consumed or inhaled.
Bacterial or viral infections are the usual causes of tonsillitis. While the tonsils perform an important job of defending your immune system, repeated episodes of tonsillitis can be a burden. If you have been experiencing infections in your tonsils for more than five times in two years or more than seven times in a year, then your condition is considered as recurrent tonsillitis.
Tonsillitis and its effect on your quality of life
Recurrent tonsillitis brings various discomforts and disruptions in your daily life. Children who already attend school and experience tonsillitis episodes several times a year may skip classes for days to weeks. Adults encounter the same concerns, specifically when their everyday activities and work are impacted. In addition, tonsillitis places a toll on your body’s health: fatigue, fever, and pain will be your steady companion whenever infections occur. Likewise, repeated antibiotic use to cure tonsillitis can result in possible side effects or complications.
Here are signs that your tonsillitis may be recurrent:
- Bad breath or halitosis
- Difficulty and pain when swallowing
- Fatigue
- Fever
- Red and white discharges on the tonsil’s surface
- Tender, swollen lymph nodes
- Sore throat, which is often severe
As mentioned earlier, recurrent tonsillitis can cause complications, particularly peritonsillar abscesses. A peritonsillar abscess, also referred to as a quinsy, is a build up of pus behind the tonsil due to an infection.
Diagnosing recurrent tonsillitis
An ENT specialist in Singapore can properly assess and diagnose the severity of your tonsillitis condition. By knowing these, they can identify what causes your recurrent tonsillitis and plan for an effective treatment to overcome it.
- Identifying the cause: Many factors can cause tonsillitis to develop frequently. The usual culprits are bacterial and viral infections, but there are rare cases when the condition is due to an underlying condition, such as sleep apnea. To determine the cause, your ENT specialist can recommend tests like throat cultures or rapid antigen detection tests (RADTs). These tests can confirm streptococcal infections. It is imperative to make a distinction between recurrent tonsillitis and other causes of lingering sore throat (e.g. allergic rhinitis, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), or postnasal drip) to be able to conduct an effective action plan.
- Determining complications and severity: An ENT specialist can assess how severe the infection is and determine probable complications that can be serious and lead to other health concerns like obstructive sleep apnea, peritonsillar abscess, and in rare cases, rheumatic fever.
- Personalised treatment plans: There are a wide range of treatments that ENT specialists can provide to treat and manage recurrent tonsillitis. The treatments can be through conservative treatments like antibiotics. However, with recurrent tonsillitis, antibiotic use can result in antibiotic resistance, thus making this approach ineffective. A recourse to this is tonsillectomy, which requires the removal of the tonsils through surgery. Your ENT specialist should discuss the benefits and risks involved in this operation to help you make an informed decision of whether to proceed with the surgery or not as this strategy should not be taken lightly.
- Continuous treatment: An ENT specialist is instrumental in providing long-term treatment to manage and minimise the severity and recurrence of your tonsillitis.
Tonsillectomy as a last resort
Tonsillectomy is considered a last resort for tonsillitis. While the procedure is generally safe, it is accompanied by risks, which can cause discomfort and pain. Having your tonsils removed also has long-term effects on your body’s immune system, so it is advisable to exhaust all conservative treatments first before proceeding to this surgical operation. Tonsillectomy is usually recommended by ENT specialists when alternative treatments like antibiotics and pain medications no longer bring relief to your condition.
Preventing recurrent tonsillitis
Recurrent tonsillitis not only depends on medical interventions, but also on your lifestyle and habits. Here are some tips to help prevent this illness from reoccurring:
- Boost your immune system: Improve your body’s health by consuming foods that are packed with nutrients, such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Get enough rest and sleep by aiming for eight to nine hours of sleep everyday. Exercise regularly and keep your body hydrated by drinking eight glasses of water or more each day.
- Observe good hygiene: Frequent handwashing and sanitising should be done, especially before eating, after using the toilet and being in public areas. Refrain from sharing eating utensils with other people, most especially when they are sick. When diagnosed with recurring tonsillitis, remember to always replace your toothbrush regularly or after getting sick.
- Ward off irritants: Avoid things that can trigger allergens or infections like tobacco smoke or places where the air pollution is heavy. Spicy and acidic foods can irritate your throat and aggravate your symptoms, so it is better to avoid them.
Final thoughts
Recurring tonsillitis is a much more serious condition compared to the common cold or a sore throat. It can disrupt your quality of life and be a constant burden that can also put a strain on your emotional well-being and financial stability. This condition should be referred to an ENT specialist in Singapore for accurate diagnosis as a misdiagnosis can lead to unnecessary and ineffective treatments.
Dr Soma Subramaniam
321 Joo Chiat Place #05-01
Parkway East Specialist Hospital
Singapore 427990
290 Orchard Road #09-20/21
Paragon Medical Centre
Singapore 238859
Tel: +65 9856 8391
Whatsapp: +65 9856 8391
