Angina is an infectious disease characterized by local manifestations, such as enlargement and inflammation of the tonsils. Most often, tonsils are enlarged in children and young people (up to the age of thirty-five). The cause of this disease can be bacteria, viruses or fungi, but most often - streptococci.
Tonsil inflammation in children occurs in the following conditions:
- simple sore throats, when only the lymphoid ring of the oropharynx is affected;
- secondary sore throats, when tonsils are affected during the development of acute infectious diseases, such as diphtheria, scarlet fever, blood diseases and so on;
- specific sore throats, for example, of fungal origin.
In everyday life, the term "tonsillitis" is usually understood to mean simple primary tonsillitis (or acute tonsillitis). If the lesion is more extensive, that is, it extends beyond the tonsils, then the term "pharyngitis" is used. Tonsillitis is both acute and chronic. In acute tonsillitis, tonsils enlarged in children only during the disease, while in chronic tonsils they are constantly enlarged.
The meaning of the existence of tonsils (tonsille) in the body is the formation of immunity. As they grow older, tonsils in children play a lesser role in immune defense, and over time this role ceases to be significant. Their intense growth occurs from the first year of life to the third. In addition, tonsils, enlarged in children, and in adults, also sometimes become the soil for the development of bacterial microflora, and as a result, a chronic infection develops. In eighty-five percent of cases, the causative agents of acute tonsillitis - A-streptococci, are significantly inferior to them in the frequency of staphylococci and pneumococci. The infection uses as a way for the lymphoid tissue of the oropharynx to enter the body, because it is to such tissue that A-streptococci have a very high tropism (that is, the ability to be fixed on the surface of the cell). Their pathogenic effect leads to the defeat of the tonsils and the further development of tonsillitis. And the products of the exchange of streptococci-A (toxins), getting into the blood, cause damage to the nervous and cardiovascular systems of children.
The causes of the primary lesion and the further development of the lesion are:
- hypothermia of the child;
- a decrease in his immune response (stress often leads to this, and especially chronic);
- too dry indoor air;
- in transferred respiratory viral infections (since viruses strongly inhibit the function of protecting epithelial cells).
And if tonsils are enlarged in children constantly, then you can be sure that often recurring tonsillitis has led to the development of chronic tonsillitis. This means that dead cells and metabolic products of bacteria have accumulated in the recesses of the tonsil sheath, which led to inflammation of the surrounding tissues.
The main symptoms of acute tonsillitis:
- specific symptoms: pain appears in the neck, in its upper part, which intensifies when swallowing, with yawning, it can also radiate into the ear;
- common symptoms are headache, fever, increased salivation, and a change in voice.
And with chronic tonsillitis, the symptoms are very different:
- pain, although it may be absent altogether;
- difficulty swallowing;
- bad breath appears from the mouth;
- taste may be gradually distorted;
- general symptoms are expressed in decreased activity and ability to concentrate.
Acute tonsillitis is catarrhal (characterized by superficial lesion), follicular (pustules are visible during examination), lacunar (pustules merge beyond the gaps) and necrotic (tonsil tissue dies, necrosis can spread beyond the tonsils). In the absence of treatment, these forms pass from lighter to more severe ones. Therefore, if you notice tonsils enlarged in children, then you do not need to waste time and self-medicate - you need to see a doctor as soon as possible.
In the hospital, the child is examined, antimicrobial therapy is prescribed, rinsing of the affected tonsils with antiseptic solutions, immunomodulators, anti-inflammatory drugs and vitamins.