Tonsil stones
Also called: Tonsillolith
A hard lump that develops in the fleshy pads, also known as tonsils, at the back of the throat.
- Usually self-treatable
- Usually self-diagnosable
- Lab tests or imaging not required
- Chronic: can last for years or be lifelong
A tonsil stone, also known as a tonsillolith, is a lump of hardened material stuck in a tonsil. Some tonsils develop small pits in which food or mucus get caught. Bacteria grows on the bits that collect in the pit.
Symptoms can include the feeling of something stuck in the throat, bad breath and a bad taste in the mouth. Other symptoms might include a long-lasting or repeated sore throat. Some people have no symptoms.
Many tonsilloliths need no treatment. A health care provider can remove larger ones during surgery.
Common: More than 200,000 US cases per year
Consult a doctor for medical advice
Sources: Mayo Clinic and others. Learn more
People also ask
What are tonsil stones caused by?
How do you get rid of tonsil stones?
What is a Tonsillolith?
What is the main cause of tonsillitis?
Tonsil stones are small, pebble-like lumps that form in your tonsils. They're made of hardened minerals (like calcium), food debris and germs.
Tonsil stones are small lumps of hard material that form in the tonsils. Tonsil stones are usually not painful or harmful but they can cause bad breath.
Missing: definition | Show results with:definition
Tonsil stones, or 'tonsilloliths', are small lumps of hardened material that can form in your tonsils. They can cause bad breath and most commonly occur in ...
Nov 19, 2021 · Tonsil stones, or tonsilloliths, are hard, sometimes painful bits of bacteria and debris that get stuck in nooks on your tonsils.
May 20, 2024 · Your tonsils are oval-shaped pads of tissue in the back of your throat, one on each side. They work as part of your body's immune system to ...
Missing: definition | Show results with:definition
Tonsillitis is inflammation of the tonsils, two oval-shaped pads of tissue at the back of the throat — one tonsil on each side. Signs and symptoms of ...
Tonsil stones, also known as tonsilloliths, are mineralizations of debris within the crevices of the tonsils. When not mineralized, the presence of debris ...
Tonsillolith: A polymicrobial biofilm - PMC - NCBI
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › pmc › articles › PMC4529540
Tonsilloliths are rare concretions found in the tonsillar crypt. Tonsillolith occurs rarely in children compared to the adults. The size of tonsillolith ranges ...
Tonsil stones are small, hard lumps that form in crevices on the surface of the tonsils. They are usually harmless, although they can cause bad breath.
Aug 13, 2018 · Also called tonsilloliths, tonsil stones are bits of debris that have lodged and hardened in your tonsils. See pictures and learn how to ...
