treatment for tonsil stones?
Thursday, September 10th, 2009 at
6:05 pm
I have suffered from tonsil stones for a number of years now but have never went to the doctor about it. I was wondering, if anyone else suffers from them?
If you dont know what they are, they are yellow-white lumps that form in your tonsils and can cause bad breath. It also feels like a foreign object is lodged at the back of the throat.
I was wondering if there is anything the doctor can actually do for tonsil stones? I have one in my throat just now and I can see it. Several websites have suggested using a cotton bud to dislodge it but i tried it and i gagged 
Filed under: Tonsil Stones
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You are probably having problems because the stones are embedded. For the vast majority of people, calculi of the tonsils cause no real problems or symptoms. Sometimes you can actually scrape them away. Tonsilloliths contain a mixture of bacteria, dead white blood cells, debris and particles of food. Sometimes they can cause problems if particles lodge in the tonsillar crypts and continue growing.
If they are causing you no problems then they are best left alone- they don’t really require treatment, you can actually try and suck them out yourself with a medicine dropper- but this will only work if the stones are very small. If the stones are embedded this could be why you are unable to remove them yourself anymore.
For some people they can be problematic and cause recurrent bouts of infection, bad breath and sore throat. If this is the case then there are three options- either removing the tonsils completely, removal of the calculi itself- this is done with a ear curette (it’s a metal stick with a loop at the end) or laser resurfacing, which is done under local. You’d need to be referred to ENT either way.
To be honest, tonsillectomy is quite drastic and the stones can still occur again even if you have had the tonsils removed. Have a chat with your GP. If you have a strong gag reflex, they can be difficult to remove or suck out.
Never heard of Tonsil Stones – sounds like you have Oral Thrush. Eat lots of natural yoghurt, avoid oral sex until your partner has been treated with Canestan and gargle with salty water for a week.
A tonsillolith (also called tonsil stone, tonsillar debris, tonsillar pearl, zot, pebbles, bad breath bead, or calculus of the tonsil) is a piece (or more commonly, a cluster) of calcareous matter which forms in the rear of the mouth, in the crevasses (called tonsillar crypts) of the palatine tonsils (which are what most people commonly refer to as simply tonsils).
Protruding tonsilloliths may have the feel of a foreign object, lodged in the back of the tonsil crypt. They may be an especially uncomfortable nuisance, but are not often harmful. They are one possible cause of halitosis ("bad breath").
Consult an ENT Specialist.
I have to say that these are most often left where they are and cause the patient little problem. On occasion,at a patients request,I have sprayed local anaesthetic on the throat to reduce gagging and picked them out.This is only really suitable for the most tolerant of patients.
i know you described it as a yellow-white lump in your tonsil but do you actually know what the yellow-white lump is? if not then allow me to let you know that it is actually small pieces of food that get stuck in your tonsils cuz you have bigger tonsil crypts than most people.
i’ve suffered with them from the time i was 12 (i’m now 23).
i know many people say to use a cotton bud but personally i’d rather use my fingers. i have a terrible gag reflex but for some reason i don’t gag as bad with my finger.
i would not go to your regular dr about this as most of them have no clue what it is and then when you explain they say oh well thats no big deal.
you should see an ENT (eark, nose, and throat dr).
they really can’t get them out for you and there is no real way to prevent them from happening in the first place.
the only thing that you can do to actually perminantly cure tonsil stones is to have your tonsils removed.
many people say drs won’t remove your tonsils just cuz you have tonsil stones what that wasn’t the case with my dr.
he said he could understand how awful it must be and he said if they were interfering with my daily live i could have them out. (well trust me they were interfering with my daily life. i have bad breath, sore throat every day, forgien object feeling, constanly clearing my throat, and swollen tonsils cuz i pick at them all the time)
well i was scheduled for surgery and in fact just had my tonsils out this morning.
i’m doing pretty well right now. my throat is sore and is killer when i swallow (which i have to do a lot cuz i have so much spit and i have to drink a lot of fluids), my hangy ball is really swollen and at some points is literally choking me, and my ears hurt a bit but to be honest i don’t feel all that bad over all.
and although its most likely going to get worse before it gets better i don’t think i’ll regret having done in the long run.