tonsillitis

Inflammation of the tonsils due to virus or bacterial infection. Tonsillitis may follow sore throat or other pharyngeal disease or it may be a primary tonsil disease. Sore throat and red swollen tonsils, which may exude pus or cause swallowing difficulty, are common; lymph nodes at the angle of the jaw are usually tender and swollen. Quinsy is a rare complication. Antibiotic treatment for the bacterial cause usually leads to a resolution but removal of the tonsils is needed in a few cases.

Related category

• HEALTH AND DISEASE

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