Healthwatch: Checking your child’s tonsils

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - Every week we visit with an area medical professional to get tips to stay healthy. Today we are joined Dr. Cara Hamilton with Black Hills Pediatrics to talk about how to check your child’s tonsils.

Dr. Hamilton started off by explaining how parents can identify some warning signs that their child’s tonsils might be causing an issue.

“First off, it doesn’t really matter how large your child’s tonsils are, it’s more important to know how large the airway around their tonsils is and what they do with their tonsils when they breathe. Some symptoms that you might watch out for in terms of getting tonsils removed would be that if your child is snoring most nights or mouth breathing at night, if they sleep restlessly and are pretty tired during the day, those could be signs their tonsils, or they would benefit from having their tonsils removed,” said Dr. Hamilton

She then went on to explain why some cases may not be a concern.

“For children under the age of four. Oftentimes, you can ignore a lot of those sleep symptoms for now, as their bodies will tend to grow faster than their tonsils, and they may grow out of most of those sleep symptoms and not need the tonsils out,” said Dr. Hamilton.

Dr. Hamilton then closed by saying those who have additional questions should reach out to their primary care provider.

This has been your Healthwatch, be sure to check here next week for more tips.

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