Tonsillitis is inflammation of the tonsils caused by infection and isn’t usually a serious condition. It tends to come on suddenly but starts to improve by itself after 3-4 days.
The tonsils are a pair of glands that sit on either side of the throat and form part of the immune system to protect the body from infections entering the mouth and nose. When the tonsils become infected, they isolate the infection and stop it spreading further into the body.
Inflamed tonsils become red and swollen and can cause a sore throat, earache, fever and headache.
The tonsils tend to be quite large in pre-teenage children because the immune system is actively developing but they usually shrink in size as we move into our teens and adulthood and the body’s immune system matures.
For this reason, tonsillitis is a common childhood illness; however, teenagers and adults can get it too. It will usually start to improve after 3-4 days without any specific treatment.
Around 70% of cases of tonsillitis are caused by viruses. Viral infections are usually self-limiting and do not require (or respond to) antibiotics.
A smaller proportion of cases of tonsillitis are caused by bacterial infection. These cases may require treatment with antibiotics if the symptoms are not improving by themselves.
In most cases, tonsillitis gets better within a week. However, a small number of children and adults have tonsillitis for longer, or it keeps returning. This is known as chronic tonsillitis.
Occasionally you can develop a pocket filled with pus (abscess) between the tonsils and wall of your throat. This is known as a peritonsillar abscess or quinsy. Complications such as quinsy are very rare and mostly affect teenagers and young adults but can occur in younger children.
Symptoms of peritonsillar abscess/quinsy include:
- Fever
- Severe throat pain
- Drooling
- Difficulty opening the mouth (called trismus)
- Muffled voice quality
- One tonsil may appear larger than the other
You should seek immediate medical assessment if you have symptoms suggestive of a peritonsillar abscess/quinsy