White Spots On Tonsils - What You Should Know

Many people who still have their tonsils complain about white spots on tonsils. The white spots can have a wide range of causes including tonsillitis, tonsil stones and even a streptococcus infection.

If tonsil stones are your problem, they'll commonly present as tiny, hard stone-like objects that are white or yellow-white in color. As they get larger and protrude from the tonsil crypts, they can easily look like white spots on the tonsils. They form in the tonsil crypts, small pockets in the tonsils that collect microbes, dead cells, food scraps and mucus caused by sinus discharge.

There are no unimpeachable numbers about how many people suffer from tonsil stones. The New York Times recently ran a story that cited a 2007 French study that found that about six percent of the participants showed some sign of tonsil stones.

However, the population of adults who have tonsil stones is probably higher than six percent. This is because far fewer tonsillectomies are performed now than in the 1950s and 1960s, when a tonsillectomy was championed as something of a universal cure for chronic sore throats, ear aches and other common childhood maladies. Many more people have tonsil stones today than in the past because - quite simply - more people still have their tonsils today.

Of course, a tonsillectomy is still a sure-fire way to stop tonsil stones and the operation usually puts an end to chronic tonsillitis and many other bacterial or viral infections of the tonsils and the oral cavity. Most doctors are cautious about removing the tonsils of adults solely for the purpose of stopping tonsil stones given the fact that the risk of post-surgical complications goes up. Nevertheless, most patients who have the stones are anxious or even desperate for a remedy because the stones have an extremely disagreeable odor.

In this situation, vigorous gargling with a non-alcoholic mouthwash or the use of an oral irrigator (such as a Waterpik) can unseat and flush the stones from the oral cavity. Non-surgical but effective treatment methods include rinsing the oral cavity with an oxygenating rinse that kills anaerobic microorganisms that play a role in the formation of the stones, along with a nasal sinus spray that cuts the production of mucus that drains into the tonsillar pockets.

While tonsil stones are a common cause of white spots on the tonsils, chronic tonsillitis and strep infections can also cause white spots on the tonsils and in other places in the oral cavity. If in doubt, be sure to consult a doctor or ENT, especially if you have a fever, about those white spots on your tonsils.