Medical Treatments And Home Remedies For Tonsillitis

The tonsils are part of your body’s system to fight infections. These two almond-shaped balls of tissue are situated towards the back of your mouth and on either side of your throat. The tonsils play an important role as part of your body’s immune system, helping to fight off viral and bacterial infections before they reach the respiratory tract and other parts of the body. The tonsils contain certain cells that trap any infection entering your body. At times however, the tonsils itself may get infected by the very same germs that it works to resist. When this happens the tonsils get swollen and inflamed causing pain and discomfort. In some cases, the tonsils may show white spots covering the surface coating indicating an infection.Some of the common signs and symptoms are:

Swollen tonsils
Swollen lymph nodes in the neck
Difficulty while swallowing
Ear pain
Fever and chills
Headaches
Bad breath
Strep throat / sore throat
Loss of voice / change in voice
Cold and cough
Stomach pain
Redness of the eyes

Tonsillitis is a contagious disease. It can lead to complications such as middle ear infection, rheumatic fever and obstructive sleep apnea. There are medicines you can take to help manage the symptoms of tonsillitis. These include paracetamol, ibuprofen and aspirin.

MEDICAL TREATMENTS

If a doctor has diagnosed tonsillitis, there are some home remedies that can help soothe the symptoms of a sore throat. The following may be warranted if you are having a bout of severe tonsillitis:

Administration of antibiotics: Tonsillitis is generally caused by a viral or bacterial infection. Tonsillitis is therefore extremely contagious and care has to be taken to maintain high levels of hygiene to prevent contracting the illness. If your infection is caused bybacteria, antibiotics will only shorten your illness by less than 1 day. Antibiotics will only prevent an ear infection in 1 out of 200 people taking antibiotics. When your doctor thinks an antibiotic will help, the recommended antibiotic is penicillin, or roxithromycin if you or your child are allergic to penicillin.
Surgical removal of the tonsils: Surgery to remove tonsils (tonsillectomy) may be used to treat frequently recurring tonsillitis, chronic tonsillitis or bacterial tonsillitis that doesn’t respond to antibiotic treatment. Tonsillectomy is usually done as an outpatient procedure, unless your child is very young, has a complex medical condition or if complications arise during surgery. That means your child should be able to go home the day of the surgery. A complete recovery usually takes seven to 14 days.

HOME REMEDIES

The goal of home treatment oftonsillitis caused by a virus is to manage symptoms as the body fights off the infection. Home treatment eases the discomfort of sore throat and symptoms such as runny nose, nasal congestion, sneezing, and coughing. The best home remedies are:

Ginger tea – Green tea is full of powerful antioxidants which scavenge all the harmful free radicals from the body and promptly get rid of them.
Honey – honey is the best cure for tonsillitis. It gives quick and very effective results. Rich in essential oils which are antimicrobial in nature. They inhibit the growth of bacteria and microorganisms, reduce swelling and have a sedative effect.
Turmeric – Turmeric has anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic and antiseptic qualities. It fights off infections and heals quickly. Add one teaspoon of turmeric powder to a glass of hot water. Gargle several times in the day and before going to bed with this water. The soreness will diminish as the germs get killed.
Onion juice – Onion juice is known for treating tonsil along with associated symptoms like cough. You can make a syrup of the same combining it with honey, which can be stored for about a week
Lemon juice – Lemon’s antiviral, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties take care of the infection as well as the inflammation. Plus, its high vitamin C content improves the body’s resistance to infections.

Source : http://www.nps.org.au