Scientists from Newcastle University have found that tonsillectomy (removal of the palatine tonsils) can improve the condition of adults who suffer from frequent sore throats. The research was published in the journal Lancet.
The largest study of its kind, conducted by scientists from the UK, showed that patients who had a tonsillectomy experienced 50% less sore throat over two years (compared to patients without a tonsillectomy).
The study included nearly 500 patients over the age of 18 who suffered from frequent sore throats. All participants followed current tonsillectomy guidelines: they had seven episodes of tonsillitis per year, five episodes per year for two years, or three episodes of tonsillitis for three years. They were randomly divided into two groups: the first underwent tonsillectomy and the second was prescribed painkillers and antibiotics.
Compared with the drug-treated group, participants who had the surgery had half as much sore throat over the next two years, even two weeks after surgery.
Previously, tonsillectomy was called an “intervention of limited clinical value” due to the lack of evidence of its effectiveness. Over the past 20 years, the number of tonsillectomies performed in the UK has halved and the number of hospitalizations for complicated tonsillitis has more than doubled.
“Clinicians can now be confident that tonsillectomy is effective for those suffering from recurrent tonsillitis,” the scientists write.
Doctors noted that one out of every five patients bled after the operation, and some had to return to the hospital for this reason.
“More research is needed to improve tonsillectomy surgery, make it less painful, and reduce the risk of bleeding,” the authors wrote.