Tonsillitis is a common disease that I believe most of my friends are not unfamiliar with. Many people’s experience is that after a cold or strain, their throat starts to hurt, and then when they go to the hospital, the doctor will often tell you that you have “tonsillitis”. What exactly is tonsillitis? The actual fact is that if you have a sore throat, you have tonsillitis, or what is the difference between the familiar “pharyngitis” and the familiar “laryngitis”? In fact, simply put, tonsillitis is a manifestation of pharyngeal inflammation, because there is a layer of lymphatic tissue under the mucous membrane of the throat that is resistant to germs, and the tonsils are the relative concentration of lymphatic tissue at the entrance of the throat, and the inflammation caused by germs stimulates symptoms such as redness, swelling, pain and even pus. Therefore, the tonsils are only a concentrated manifestation of pharyngeal inflammation, and each attack of pharyngeal inflammation is not necessarily accompanied by tonsillitis, but simple pharyngitis can also appear “sore throat” and other symptoms, but tonsillitis is more common. Tonsillitis attacks are most often accompanied by sore throat and high fever, but most people can recover in 3 to 7 days with medication, while a few people need 1-2 weeks. So should I have surgery for tonsillitis or not? Especially in children and adolescents, the incidence of tonsillitis is significantly higher than in adults because of the active lymphatic tissue proliferation in the pharynx. As I mentioned earlier, the tonsils, as a lymphatic immune organ, have a certain role in resisting viral and bacterial invasion. I believe that not only parents of children, but also adult patients or medical professionals may have concerns about the impact of tonsil removal on the body’s resistance. Ultimately, it is a matter of weighing the “pros” and “cons”. Not only the surgery, but also the medicine, there will be side effects, do not because of the side effects of a long illness, this is obviously to put the cart before the horse, because of the small loss of big approach. First of all, we should be clear that the tonsils have an immune function, but their immune effect is limited. After the age of 16 to 18, with the gradual improvement of the body’s immunity, the tonsils of most people will gradually shrink and rarely become inflamed again, therefore, in the long run, removing the tonsils will not bring irreparable damage. Secondly, because there are many small and deep depressions on the surface of the tonsils, we call them “tonsillar crypts”, which easily allow pathogenic bacteria to hide in them, and once the body’s resistance is low, the inflammation will return, and even induce nephritis, rheumatic endocarditis, arthritis, etc. in a few people because of recurrent inflammation. At this time, the tonsils are not only no longer the body’s “defender”, but have become a hidden “enemy”, and keeping him will only lead to endless problems. Again, in many adolescents and children, physiological enlargement of the tonsils, or the persistence of swelling after repeated inflammatory stimulation, causing snoring, breathing difficulties, slurred speech, etc., also need to be operated early, otherwise it is easy to cause children’s inattention, reduced learning efficiency, speech disorders and even mental illness. In addition, because tonsillar abscess is symptomatic and prone to recurrence, early removal is generally recommended after an attack; and in cases with unexplained hypothermia, IgA nephropathy, etc. where the tonsils are suspected to be a potential lesion or where tonsillar tumors are considered, performing tonsillectomy is more beneficial than harmful. It should be mentioned that in the past, diphtheria carriers were included in the textbooks as indications for tonsil surgery, but because of the low prevalence of diphtheria and the popularization of the triple diphtheria vaccine, such patients can hardly be seen in the clinic anymore, so there is no need to blindly look up the names of the diseases according to the internet. In summary, tonsillitis is not a critical condition, and tonsillectomy is not a difficult surgery, the key is to understand and treat it correctly, so you don’t need to be confused and nervous if you are clear in your mind. Combined with the current variety of textbooks and expert advocates, I will tonsillectomy indications are clear as follows: 1, chronic tonsillitis repeated acute attacks, ≥ 4 times a year (some experts also proposed the following criteria: ≥ 7 attacks in the last year, the average ≥ 5 attacks in the last 2 years / year, ≥ 3 attacks in the last 3 years / year, but I think this standard is still not reasonable, such as 2 years 9 attacks do not meet the criteria for surgery, but dragged to the third year (Therefore, to determine the chronic activity of tonsillitis, it is not necessary to be precise to a few times, and it is difficult to remember precisely after >5 times, generally my standard is 4 times; if the last few years are hair, the average between 3-4 times on the line, parents are also easy to judge, and to reach this standard indicates that the inflammation in the recurrent activity and has brought considerable impact on life). 2.Persons with previous history of peri-tonsillar abscess. 3. Children with excessive tonsillar hypertrophy, which hinders swallowing and breathing and leads to nutritional disorders or leads to obvious snoring and lack of oxygen. 4.Patients with rheumatic fever, arthritis, and rheumatic heart disease, etc., who suspect the tonsils to be the foci of the disease. 5.Patients with chronic exudative otitis media due to tonsils, hypertrophy of the proliferators, which affects the function of the eustachian tube, and who have been ineffective by conservative treatment. 6.Unexplained long-term low-grade fever, and when there is chronic inflammation of the tonsils. 7.IgA nephropathy, where the tonsils are suspected to be the lesion. 8.A variety of benign tonsil tumors, those who consider malignant tumors need to choose the program or comprehensive treatment carefully.