Why does the right side of my throat hurt?

Our throats can become abnormal due to a variety of factors, and pain is a typical symptom. Many patients are concerned about the pain on the right side of the throat. The most likely possibility is tonsillitis. In addition to abnormalities in the throat, there are also systemic manifestations, such as indigestion. Patients should make judgments based on their own situation and their understanding of tonsillitis.

Causes

1. It is caused by the accumulation of bacteria and secretions in the tonsillar fossa. The pathogenic bacteria are mainly streptococci or staphylococci.

2. Secondary to certain acute infectious diseases such as scarlet fever, diphtheria, influenza, measles, etc.

Clinical manifestations

1. Acute phase

(1) Systemic symptoms: acute onset, chills, and high fever up to 39-40°C. Young children may suffer from convulsions, vomiting or lethargy, loss of appetite, constipation, and general laziness due to high fever.

(2) Local symptoms include obvious sore throat, especially when swallowing. Severe pain may radiate to the ears. Young children often cry and become restless because they cannot swallow. If children's breathing is affected by enlarged tonsils, their sleep may be disturbed and they often wake up at night.

2. Chronic stage

(1) Recurrent sore throat occurs when you catch a cold, get chilled, feel tired, have poor sleep, or are stimulated by alcohol or tobacco, and there is discomfort and a feeling of blockage in the throat.

(2) Bad breath is often caused by the growth of bacteria in the tonsils and the purulent embolism remaining in the tonsils.

(3) Enlarged tonsils Enlarged tonsils can cause difficulty in swallowing, slurred speech, shortness of breath or snoring during sleep.

(4) Systemic manifestations: Bacteria and pus plugs in the tonsils often enter the digestive tract when swallowed, causing indigestion. If bacterial toxins enter the body, symptoms may include headache, weakness in the limbs, easy fatigue or low fever.

treat

1. General treatment

(1) Keep your mouth clean. Brush your teeth before going to bed and rinse your mouth after meals to reduce the chance of bacterial infection in the oral cavity.

(2) For the gargling method, you can choose iodine tablets, 1 to 2 tablets each time, 3 to 4 times a day. Gargling with light salt water is simple and convenient. You can take a cup of warm water after meals and before going to bed, add a little salt until it tastes salty, and gargle repeatedly for about 5 minutes each time.

(3) Drug treatment: Use drugs that enhance immunity. If it is a streptococcal infection, long-acting penicillin can be used for treatment. Strengthen physical exercise to enhance physical fitness and disease resistance. When conservative treatment is ineffective, surgical treatment should be used.

2. Principles of surgical treatment

(1) Those whose tonsils are too enlarged, which hinders breathing and swallowing.

(2) Recurrent acute attacks, more than 4 to 5 times per year, with a history of peritonsillar abscess.

(3) Patients with long-term low-grade fever and no other lesions except tonsillitis during systemic examination.

(4) Diseases such as nephritis and rheumatism caused by tonsillitis should be treated with elective surgery under the guidance of a doctor.

3. Those who are not suitable for surgery

(1) Acute inflammatory period and periods of acute illness, upper respiratory tract infection and epidemics.

(2) Patients with hematopoietic system diseases, hypocoagulopathy, hypertension, heart disease, tuberculosis, etc. are not suitable for surgery.

(3) Women should not undergo surgery during their menstrual period or 3 to 5 days before their menstrual period, otherwise the symptoms of pharyngitis will worsen after surgery.

(4) Patients with chronic pharyngitis do not need surgery unless it is absolutely necessary. Otherwise, the symptoms of pharyngitis will worsen after surgery. As for when it is appropriate for patients with chronic tonsillitis to undergo surgery, it is best to ask a doctor to help decide.

Prognosis

Timely treatment in the acute phase has a good prognosis. Chronic tonsillitis is often accompanied by chronic diseases such as chronic pharyngitis, acute laryngitis, chronic otitis media, and can even induce serious diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, rheumatic valvular heart disease, endocarditis, myocarditis, and acute nephritis.