My three year old son has had several tonsil infections. What treatment is available?
Conventional remedy: Recurrent tonsillitis can be very debilitating. If you have noticed white spots or a coating on your son's tonsils when he is unwell, then this almost certainly means he has been infected by the streptococcal bug, commonly referred to as a strep throat.
The streptococcus is easily treated with penicillin or erythromycin, although some patients require antibiotics for 10 days to completely eradicate the infection.
A minority of children develop tonsillitis at regular intervals despite the use of adequate courses of antibiotics. The tonsils will enlarge with each bout of infection and some children will develop breathing and snoring problems. If left untreated, they may even have difficulty swallowing food and can lose weight and begin to look pale and unwell.
When tonsil trouble gets to this stage, there is really only one answer. The removal of the tonsils by an ENT surgeon will eradicate the source of regular infection. The difference in the child's well-being some weeks after the operation is quite remarkable. If your child is getting in excess of six tonsil infections a year, then you should ask your doctor about the advisability of seeing an ENT specialist.
Alternative remedy: Tonsillitis is one of those acute illnesses that can be treated homeopathically, often very successfully, in the home. However, to select a homeopathic remedy yourself, you will first need to gather together some more information and symptoms particular to the infection as your little boy is experiencing it. Although only three years old, there are questions he will easily be able to answer. For example, does the pain hurt more on one side than the other? Can he tell if the pain feels hot or cutting? Does it hurt to swallow food but not if taking a drink? Does it hurt to talk? You can also learn by observing him. Does his voice sound hoarse? Does he seem thirstier? Is he perhaps asking for ice in drinks, or for something warm? Is he more inclined to sit quietly for a story or a cuddle, or is he cross or sleeping more? How does he look? Is he pale or flushed? Does he seem to have a high temperature? Does his breath smell? This information is the same as that which would be elicited by a homeopath in the treatment of your child. It should therefore help you to choose a remedy that will speed your son's recovery. It should also lessen the pain and discomfort for him in the short term.
Miranda Castro's Complete Homeopathy Handbook is a good reference book for home prescribing. Once you have chosen a suitable remedy, you should purchase it in a 6c potency from one of the many health food shops and pharmacies that stock homeopathic medicines.
If your son will take a tablet, you should give him one every four hours over 24 hours and ask him to chew it or allow it to dissolve in his mouth. However, if, like many young children, he's reluctant to take a tablet, then crushing one and dissolving it in a glass of water will suffice - you must simply make sure to give him only one spoonful of the solution in place of each tablet, stirring the glass each time.
If the remedy chosen is the correct one, your little boy will feel some relief within the 24 hours, and further doses should be stopped once there is a significant improvement. If after six doses there is no improvement, stop the treatment and reassess. It may be that the remedy selected was not the right one after all.
As always, if the situation does not improve, seek help. Certainly if the infection recurs, a consultation with a professional homeopath would be advisable.
The Irish Society of Homoeopaths can be contacted Monday to Thursday mornings, 091-565040
Health questions can be emailed to patientquery@irish-times.ie
