Is Tonsillitis contagious? Yes, it is because tonsillitis is basically an inflammation of the tonsils, the fleshy parts of the tissue on both sides at the back of the throat, which wards of germs that come into the body through the mouth. Once tonsillitis becomes red and enlarged, they are coated with whitish, yellow or gray substance. A child who is affected by tonsillitis shows the following symptoms.
Symptoms of Tonsillitis
Pain in the throat while swallowing can be a symptom of tonsillitis. Apart from this, fever and sore throat can be other symptoms. If tonsillitis, which is an inflammation in the tonsils complicates, it can lead to kidney failure or dehydration due to difficulty in swallowing.
Tonsillitis also includes other symptoms like cough, red and swollen tonsillitis, nasal congestion, cough etc. Pain in the throat that moves to the ear is also tonsillitis symptom. The other symptoms are high fever, loss of appetite, malaise, chillness and excessive thirst. Tonsillitis can also become congested, engorged and swollen.
We had talked about tonsillitis beging contagious. The reason this happens is because tonsillitis spreads through contact from person to person by transmission of nasal fluids of an infected person or contact witht the throat. So, if your child has tonsillitis, keep his eating plates and glass separate and wash them in soapy, boiled water. Family members should practice hygiene and wash their hands frequently. Once the tonsillitis is treated, throw the person’s toothbrush out and replace it with another one.
Tonsillitis treatment
Tonsilltiis can be caused by virus; if this is the case, it should be treated automatically. But if it caused by strep bacteria which is characterized by ear pain while swallowing, it requires antibiotic treatment. Symptoms of tonsillitis like dry mouth, dehydration, lack of appetite, ear pain etc are signs of the contagious disease caused by strep bacteria.
Tonsillitis treatment caused by a virus
If a virus is causing the problem, it should resolve by itself. You can give home remedies like drinking warm tea, drinking warm tea and take OTC medication like ibuprofen or acetaminophen to relive the problem. . 20 ml warm water with one teaspoon of honey, two or three times a day can be quite helpful in curing tonsillitis.
Tonsillitis caused by bacteria
Antibiotics are useful for treating tonsillitis caused by strep bacteria. The doctor will advise you to take prescription which you have to abide by for the entire duration, even if the symptoms go away. If you stop taking medicine before the completion of the course, the bacteria can develop antibiotic resistance, making it difficult to administer antibiotics in future.
Surgery
Tonsillectomy or surgical removal of tonsillitis is common for children. But it is not done so commonly as it was done in the past. This is done only when the child has major complications, chronic infections, recurrent infections that do not respond properly to the treatment.
At the age of 35, I too had to have a tonsillectomy. It was the worst and most panufil experience of my life. The pain I felt for two weeks after the surgery surpassed being in labor four days when I was having my daughter. If you are having them cut out, it takes four to six weeks for a person to fully recover from such a surgery, regardless of what anyone will tell you. If you are having them lasered off, down time is cut by half. Oh, and do not believe the “you can have all the ice cream you want!” hog wash. Not true. Dairy, citric acid (or similar), cold or hot will intensify the recovery pain. Also, no matter how much morphine you are on coming out of the surgery, you still feel like your throat has a third degree burn. The positive side of it? You will NEVER suffer from throat pain ever again. Was it worth it? ABSOLUTELY!!!