Acute tonsillitis

For a lay person:

Acute tonsillitis is a sudden infection of the tonsils at the back of the throat, most common in children and young adults. It causes a sore throat, fever and swollen tonsils, often with white patches, and usually improves within a week.

For a trained medical person:

Mostly viral, with group A streptococcus the main bacterial cause and Epstein-Barr virus causing similar exudative tonsillitis. Diagnosis is clinical, guided by Centor or FeverPAIN scores and rapid antigen testing. Management is analgesia and fluids, with penicillin (or an alternative in allergy) for likely streptococcal infection; complications include peritonsillar abscess.

In Chinese medicine:

Liu and Tseng's textbook differentiates this condition into these patterns: Warm Evil Attacking Lung, Stagnant Heat at Lung Channel Syndrom e; Evil Heat Entering Interior, Excess Heat in Lung and Stomach Sy ndrome. Treatment follows the pattern a patient presents with, not the Western diagnosis alone.

When to get help: Seek urgent care for difficulty breathing or swallowing, drooling, severe one-sided throat pain, trouble opening the mouth or a muffled voice, which may signal an abscess. See a doctor if symptoms are not improving after a few days.