Tonsillectomy is recommended in adults with recurrent tonsillitis but it does not prevent Rheumatic fever and its complications
Jason Powell et al write that to get rid of ill health and pain due to recurrent tonsillitis, it is worthwhile to get total tonsillectomy done in adults. However, a very old paper by Chamovitz et al says that it does not prevent sore throats due to group A streptococcus (study was done on military men from 1949 to 1954) and hence rheumatic fever and its complications like valvular diseases.
Reference:
1: CHAMOVITZ R, RAMMELKAMP CH Jr, WANNAMAKER LW, DENNY FW Jr. The effect of
tonsillectomy on the incidence of streptococcal respiratory disease and its
complications. Pediatrics. 1960 Sep;26:355-67.
Rapid Response:
Tonsillectomy is recommended in adults with recurrent tonsillitis but it does not prevent Rheumatic fever and its complications
Jason Powell et al write that to get rid of ill health and pain due to recurrent tonsillitis, it is worthwhile to get total tonsillectomy done in adults. However, a very old paper by Chamovitz et al says that it does not prevent sore throats due to group A streptococcus (study was done on military men from 1949 to 1954) and hence rheumatic fever and its complications like valvular diseases.
Reference:
1: CHAMOVITZ R, RAMMELKAMP CH Jr, WANNAMAKER LW, DENNY FW Jr. The effect of
tonsillectomy on the incidence of streptococcal respiratory disease and its
complications. Pediatrics. 1960 Sep;26:355-67.
Competing interests: No competing interests