Tonsillolith Symptoms, Causes & More
Article Sources
- 1. Krespi, Yosef P., and Victor Kizhner. 'Laser Tonsil Cryptolysis: In-Office 500 Cases Review.’ American Journal of Otolaryngology, W.B. Saunders, 10 Apr. 2013, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0196070913000690#
- 2. C. Chang; R. Thrasher. 'Coblation Cryptolysis to Treat Tonsil Stones: a Retrospective Case Series.’ Ear, Nose, & Throat Journal, U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22711390/
- 3. Alfayez, Abdulrhman, et al. 'A Giant Tonsillolith.’ Saudi Medical Journal, Saudi Medical Journal, Apr. 2018, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938656/
Symptoms
Small tonsilloliths may not produce any noticeable symptoms. Even when the tonsilloliths are large, sometimes they're only visible on a CT scan or X-ray. However, when a person has symptoms, they may include bad breath, a sore throat, coughing, visible white debris, difficult swallowing, ear pain and tonsil swelling.3Alfayez, Abdulrhman, et al. ‘A Giant Tonsillolith.’ Saudi Medical Journal, Saudi Medical Journal, Apr. 2018, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938656/
Bad breath is a common symptom of tonsilloliths. Also known as halitosis, bad breath may occur when the tonsils become infected. When tonsilloliths occur along with infected tonsils, a person may experience a sore throat.
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