Is tonsillitis a symptom or an illness in itself?
Thursday, February 11th, 2010 at
5:02 pm
Maybe a silly question…
My toddler has a rash all over his body, has a high temperature (over 40C at times) and a red ear. We took him to the doctors this morning and were referred to hospital to see a pediatrician who after looking at his throat said he has tonsillitis and that the rash looks viral. We’ve been given some throat spray and told to keep giving him Calpol to keep his temperature down.
So is tonsillitis the cause of the problem (rash, fever, loss of appetite etc)? Or just another symptom of having a virus?
Filed under: Tonsillitis Symptoms
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Tonsillitis, literally means inflammation of the tonsils. It is the "problem" or diagnosis. The cause is likely to be viral, though it may be bacterial. There is no real way of knowing unless swabs are taken. In most cases it tends to be viral and the body’s immune system will take care of it.
Even when bacteria cause infections, the immune system can usually take care it, occasionally antibiotics are needed.
When the tonsils are inflamed, the inflammation can spread up a tube called the Eustachian tube (a tube on each side of the back of your throat that connects to each ear respectively) , this tube leads to the ear and can cause the ear drum to become inflamed.
In your toddlers case, as the virus spreads, it causes various chemicals to be released by the immune system. These cause the temperature, tiredness, loss of appetite (food, sometimes drink as well) and may even contribute towards the rash.
I hope this helps
Kind regards
DrAdvice
http://www.DrAdvice.co.uk
Tonsillitis is the illness, it was the virus that created it.
illness
Tonsillitis is the illness itself, as tonsillitis is the general term for an infection of the tonsils. Dont worry, its not a silly question-not every knows the answer, and in children, diseases are almost always slightly different. Its natural to want to know. The infection causing the tonsillitis often cause fever, and rashes sometimes occur in children. A throat spray, depending on the drug, sounds like the best cause of action. Keep checking their tonsils every morning and evening, to check whether the drug is working, and check when you can start giving your toddler more solid foods.
I hope your child gets better soon.
tonsillitis is the illness…the fever is just one symptom. I used to get tonsillitis every year. like clockwork. I went to the doctor….they gave me a shot of penicillin in my butt and a bunch of little red pills. bamm..I was cured…well…of course until next season.