Question
The tonsils are 3 degrees large and keep recurring, causing the child to have a fever. After taking fever-reducing shots and eating symptomatic anti-inflammatory medication, it gets severe, and they have to get an intravenous drip. Now that the child is 9 years old, is it better to have the tonsils removed or not?
Answer
Under normal circumstances, the tonsils maintain a healthy state with intact surface epithelium and continuous secretion of mucus glands, which can expel bacteria along with desquamated epithelial cells from the crypt orifice. When the body’s resistance decreases due to overexertion, colds, or other reasons, the protective function of the epithelium weakens and the secretion function of the glands decreases, leading to bacterial infection and inflammation of the tonsils. If tonsillitis recurs frequently and has adverse effects on the whole body, surgery to remove the tonsils can be considered.