tonsillitis - again!

[ipswichwitch]

DS is 2.5yo and had several nasty bouts of tonsillitis but it's taken him to develop sleep apnoea as a result of constantly enlarged tonsils to get an ENT referral. He's due to see the paediatric ENT consultant at the end of the month after the regular ENT department said he definitely needs a tonsillectomy, but paeds needs to handle it.

So, yesterday DS was grumpy and not eating well which we thought was due to the last molars coming through. We had a rough night with him (woke umpteen times for a drink and because of his apnoea), and today he has a temperature, is off his food and his throat is red raw. All signs of tonsillitis.

What I'm wondering is, is it really worth taking him to the gp? They always refuse antibiotics for him (tbh this is probably caused by the nasty cold virus we've all had), an just say to give him calpol/brufen. He completely freaks out at the dr' s (prior bad experience) so I don't think it's worth the trauma for him. However, MIL is quite insistent he needs to see the dr, and DH thinks it might be worth seeing them, just to get it on record that he's had yet another episode. I guess I'm asking what would you do?

Forgot to add that I'd take him to the dr if his temp got scarily high or if his symptoms didn't improve in a few days (as per NHS website)

Hello, yes I would take him for two reasons it does record the number of incidents and once they get over a certain number surgeons are more inclined to operate and two from experience tonsillitis can get nasty quickly.
My youngest daughter started getting tonsillitis aged 10 months, it also caused apnea and swallowing problems and speech delay, she'll be 3 yrs in June and has just started to speak in last few months. Last summer she was getting it at least once every 3 weeks till she became very poorly with it and ended up in hospital for 8 days very dehydrated, it took 6 different types of IV antibiotics to get it under control.
Anyway she ended up having operation just after her 2nd birthday to remove tonsils, surgeons wanted her to be 12 kg but we couldn't get her weight up due to the swallowing problems caused by the massive tonsils getting in the way, but they did the op and without exaggeration it changed her life. She's been infection free for 8 months now :).

my son used to get recurrent ear infections and tonsillitis - like 9 in 3 months. I didn't want or need antibiotics, as I knew the advice would be calpol and water, BUT I wanted to make sure his medical records recorded every incident. I am convinced that helped in the decision to remove adenoids and tonsils when my son just turned 3!
Like mummy it completely changed his life and 4 years later has not one another ear or throat infection (touch wood so as not to jinx him! )

Thanks. I'll give the Gp a try (might not get in til tomorrow as they are notoriously bad for appt availability). Poor lad is always getting ear infections too and has a constant snotty nose. He breathes through his mouth all the time and snores like you wouldn't believe. Been back and forth to the Gp but they refused an ENT referral until he started getting sleep apnoea which has been horrendous. He wakes umpteen times a night screaming hes that scared. He sleepwalks and constantly tosses and turns. Hope to god the tonsillectomy works as well for him as it has for your DC.

Definitely see the GP so they can record the number of incidents. They should be able to tell if its viral or bacterial and prescribe accordingly. I'm a long term sufferer of the dreaded tonsilitis, and it can get nasty quickly. I've had scarlet fever as a result, and septecemia as well as a random septic elbow as the infection travelled through my bloodstream...

It will go down as another incident which strengthens the need for a tonsillectomy.

I hope he is better soon x