Tonsillitis medical therapy

Medical Therapy
Treatments of tonsillitis consist of pain management medications and lozenges. If the tonsillitis is caused by bacteria, then antibiotics are prescribed. Penicillin is the most commonly used antibiotic.

In many cases of tonsillitis, the pain caused by the inflamed tonsils warrants the prescription of topical anesthetics for temporary relief. Viscous lidocaine solutions are often prescribed for this purpose.

Ibuprofen or other analgesic can help to decrease the edema and inflammation which will ease the pain and allow the patient to swallow liquids sooner.

When tonsillitis is caused by a virus, the length of illness depends on which virus is involved. Usually, a complete recovery is made within one week, however some rare infections may last for up to two weeks.

Also using warm water and salt solution, and gargling may help kill the infection, though it's not a strong treatment.