Find out if your sore throat could be due to tonsillitis and what your treatment options are.

Most people can agree that a sore throat is pretty miserable. Not being able to enjoy all your favorite foods because it hurts to swallow can be a downright nuisance. Of course, you may be wondering if your symptoms could be due to an infection like strep or even tonsillitis. From the office of our Norwalk, Westport and New Canaan, CT ENT doctor, Dr. Andrew Parker, here are some of the telltale signs that you could possibly be dealing with tonsillitis.

Tonsils are the fleshy masses that are found in the back of your throat. They are designed to stop bacteria and germs from entering your body. However, they aren’t infallible and they too can fall victim to an infection. The two most common symptoms of tonsillitis include swelling of the tonsils and a sore throat. Along with these symptoms you may also experience any of these other common symptoms:

• Blisters on the throat
• Redness in the back of the throat
• Tonsils that have a white or yellow coating
• Problems swallowing
• Swollen lymph nodes in the neck
• Fever
• Halitosis (bad breath)

Either bacteria or a virus is usually to blame for tonsillitis. And while this condition is usually more common in children, adults can also develop tonsillitis. Of course, in order to determine your course of treatment our ear, nose and throat specialist will need to determine the cause of your tonsillitis. One of the best ways to determine the cause of your symptoms is to take a quick swab of the throat and send it to a lab to have it tested.

If your results show that your tonsillitis is bacterial then you’ll be given a round of antibiotics to help knock out the infection. If your infection is viral antibiotics won’t be necessary, as they would work to treat tonsillitis caused by a virus. In fact, the body is pretty good at fighting off viral infections without even needing medication. Instead, we may recommend some lifestyle modifications to help speed up your recovery and promote faster healing.

If you truly have tonsillitis it is important to seek treatment as soon as possible. If you are noticing that you experience tonsillitis several times a year then it’s especially important that you call our Norwalk, Westport and New Canaan, CT ENT office to find out if getting your tonsils removed is the next best option. Call Parker Ear Nose & Throat today.