What causes tonsil pain?

In daily life, many people often feel tonsil pain when swallowing food, drinking water, and talking. Tonsils are located in the lower jaw of people and are used when speaking. The tonsils move up and down with the movement of the tongue and the mouth, which brings very important value to our body. However, tonsils belong to lymph nodes, and lymph nodes often get sick. Therefore, many people's tonsil pain is mostly caused by tonsillitis. Tonsillitis also often causes people to have fever and swollen tonsils. Severe cases can also cause various complications, which are quite harmful. Therefore, in order to find a suitable treatment plan in peacetime, you must regulate the tonsils to avoid some harm caused by the tonsils.

Symptoms of Tonsillitis:

Acute: chills and high fever, tonsil congestion, and pseudomembrane; Chronic: occasional dry throat, foreign body sensation, itching, etc., often with a history of acute attacks.

Classification and clinical manifestations of tonsillitis

Tonsillitis can be divided into acute tonsillitis and chronic tonsillitis. Acute tonsillitis can be divided into acute catarrhal tonsillitis and acute suppurative tonsillitis. Typical symptoms of tonsillitis are also divided into:

1. Acute catarrhal tonsillitis: The lesions are mild, and the inflammation is limited to the surface mucosa. There are no obvious inflammatory changes in the crypts and tonsil parenchyma. There may be sore throat, low fever, fatigue, poor appetite, etc. The sore throat is localized, and the tonsils, palatoglossal arches, and palatopharyngeal arches are congested and edematous. The tonsils are not obviously swollen, and there is no obvious exudate on the surface.

2. Acute suppurative tonsillitis: The inflammation starts from the tonsillar crypts and quickly enters the tonsillar parenchyma. As a result, the tonsils are significantly swollen, and the crypts are filled with exudates such as desquamated epithelium, pus cells, and bacteria. In severe cases, purulent formation occurs. The onset is very acute, with severe systemic symptoms including fever, chills, loss of appetite, and body temperature that can rise to 38°C to 40°C. Local manifestations include obvious sore throat, and even difficulty in eating and speaking. The sore throat can radiate to the ears, and sometimes it is inconvenient to turn the head. The lymph nodes at the mandibular angle are swollen. High fever in young children can cause vomiting, convulsions, and lethargy.

3. Chronic tonsillitis: There are usually no obvious local symptoms, but there may be dry throat, foreign body sensation, itching, etc., and there is often a history of acute attacks. In children, enlarged tonsils can affect breathing and swallowing. If the adenoids are also enlarged, it will cause nasal congestion and snoring. Due to the absorption of bacteria and toxins in the pits, it can cause headaches, fatigue, and low fever. Knowing these typical manifestations of tonsillitis is very helpful for patients to be aware of their disease and receive timely treatment.

Common clinical syndromes of tonsillitis in TCM include

1. Lung meridian wind-heat type: symptoms include fever, chills, sore throat, cough, white or yellow tongue coating, and rapid pulse.

2. Lung and stomach heat accumulation type: Symptoms include high fever and chills, severe sore throat, difficulty swallowing, thirst, bad breath and constipation, red tongue, thick yellow tongue coating, and rapid pulse.

3. Internal heat and toxicity type: Symptoms include persistent high fever, worsening pharyngeal epilepsy, accompanied by ear pain on the same side, dysphagia, yellow and red tongue coating, and rapid and strong pulse.

4. Deficiency-fire ascending type: Symptoms include dry throat and mouth, a feeling of blockage in the throat, dry cough, accompanied by hot hands and feet, or shortness of breath, sore waist, little coating on the tongue, red tongue, and a thin and rapid pulse.

5. Kidney Yin deficiency type: Symptoms include dry mouth and throat, especially at dusk, with burning pain, foreign body sensation, fever in the five parts of the body, dizziness, difficulty in endurance, redness of the laryngeal nucleus and surrounding areas, with yellow-white pus plugs squeezed out of the laryngeal nucleus, red tongue with little coating, and weak and thready pulse.

6. Lung and spleen qi deficiency type: Symptoms include dry throat, itching, slight cough, small and sticky sputum that cannot be coughed up, excessive sweating on the head when sleeping, dark red laryngeal nucleus and the surrounding area, short white dot-like marks on the laryngeal nucleus, or cheesy pus plugs squeezed out, light red tongue with little coating, and thready pulse.

By understanding the above symptoms of tonsillitis, we have a deeper understanding of some symptoms of tonsillitis. You can learn from the above introduction in your life. If you find that your throat is uncomfortable or you have a fever, you should go to the hospital in time. In addition, you can also compare the above situation and explain the situation to the doctor.