School Nurse

Tonsillitis 

We have received a number of reports of cases of Tonsillitis and related symptoms amongst our students recently. Please read the information below so that you can recognise symptoms and seek an appropriate medical assessment and treatment for your child, as necessary. If your child is diagnosed with tonsillitis please check with the doctor that they are no longer contagious before sending them back to school.

At the back of your throat, two masses of tissue called tonsils act as filters, trapping germs that could otherwise enter your airways and cause infection. They also produce antibodies to fight infection. But sometimes the tonsils themselves become infected. Overwhelmed by bacteria or viruses, they swell and become inflamed, a condition known as tonsillitis.

Tonsillitis is common, especially in children. The condition can occur occasionally or recur frequently.

Causes and Symptoms

Bacterial and viral infections can cause tonsillitis.

The main symptoms of tonsillitis are inflammation and swelling of the tonsils, sometimes severe enough to block the airways. Other symptoms include:

• Throat pain or tenderness
• Redness of the tonsils
• A white or yellow coating on the tonsils
• Painful blisters or ulcers on the throat
• Headache
• Loss of appetite
• Ear pain
• Difficulty swallowing or breathing through the mouth
• Swollen glands in the neck or jaw area
• Fever, chills
• Bad breath

In children, symptoms may also include:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Abdominal pain

Medical Advice

Contact a health-care professional if you have:

• a sore throat,
• a fever greater than 38.3 C or 101 F,
• swollen and tender tonsils with whitish or yellowish to gray colored coating, or pain on only one side of the throat.

Seek emergency medical care if you:

• are having severe pain,
• have difficulty swallowing and/or breathing,
• have a bad headache, and
• abdominal pain and/or headache.

For further info please see the links below:

https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/tonsillitis

http://www.medicinenet.com/is_tonsillitis

Keep Well & Stay Safe

Kind Regards                                                                                                                                     Rosemary Van Aperen                                                                                                                          School Nurse