Tonsillectomy: Differences - UK & USA

06-02-2007, 12:06 PM

Day 11 post tonsillectomy

After going through the whole internet and reading everything there is to read about tonsillectomy's i've noticed differences in the way we do things over here (UK) and over there (USA).

We only get given ibuprofen and paracetamol to take home after surgery and we certainly don't get given morphine in hospital and antibiotics (which i think we should get, given that I had bleeding on day 7 caused by an infection)!

Our doctors tell us to get back to eating hard food diet immediately - In fact I got given toast the morning after my op. where as you guys seem to live on really soft food for the first week.

I'm just wondering whether our way or your way is best for recovery? (I don't want to try and start an argument here i'm just genuinely interested what way people think would be best)? I.e. If you had to look after someone who had just had their tonsils out what medicines and advice would you give them for post op. surgery?

My experience: I got back to my normal food diet immediately, even though I have gone through some major pain (especially on days 5-7) I still stuck at my normal diet! I've heard getting back to a normal diet as soon as possible will reduce liklihood of bleeding (not in my case) and you won't notice descabbing pain as the hard food scrapes it off!

I'd like to hear your views!

x x x

06-02-2007, 03:04 PM

I know my doctor has a full 2 weeks schedule of what you can eat and when...basically starting with fluids, moving to soft foods, then to meat, and after 2 weeks a normal diet. However, other doctors in my area have people eating chicken nuggets on day two or fried chicken and they have worked as well! I guess it really is an individualized thing on how we react.

Also, I was given demerol after surgery and not only did that make me sick, but I never felt it helped. When given tylenol 3, it helped and didn't make me sick. So I am actually one for not giving the hard meds (however, I wasn't on a regular diet like you seemed to have been so maybe it would have worked).

It will be interesting to see others points of views as well.

06-16-2007, 08:08 PM

Hi i also in uk However i was given morphine as soon as i came round but only codeine and paracetamol after that as im allergic to ibuprofen. me and the two ladies on my ward were each given sandwiches two hours after the op and then stew soup and crumble five hours after the op of which i had .one sip of soup.

06-17-2007, 08:06 PM

I'm in USA. My doctor (and not all doctors are the same obviously) told me I could eat whatever I want after surgery. He also said I probably wouldn't want to. And he was right about that. He said that he doesn't care what I eat, I just have to be sure to drink and keep hydrated. As for surgery, he wasn't going to give me antibiotics but my mom insisted, and he did prescribe it to make her feel better. I also got 2 bottles of...I'm not sure what it is...painkiller. I only used one in my whole 10 days though, so I still have a whole bottle left. I did bleed on day 8, but it stopped. Now I'm on day 10 and doing great, eating solid foods and everything. Ear problems still on my left side though.

Anyways, yeah, my doctor said I could eat whatever I could get down. Others that got the surgery done by my same doctor apparently ate stuff like hamburgers the next day. I was no where near that brave though, and stuck to the soft stuff until I felt comfortable.

09-12-2007, 10:17 PM

I'm in the US...on my list of "foods to avoid" was nuts but peanuts were the first thing I ate when I got home from surgery because I was ravenous and craving just peanuts after not having eaten for 18 or so hours! I figured that eating whatever I wanted but in small quantities was good too because they did encourage food so as to keep stretching the tissue back there as you swallow so that it heals correctly.
Although I did eat basically the things I always do but in smaller quantities, they definitely did encourage the softer food diet. Probably to keep the bleeding scab cases at bay?

09-13-2007, 04:11 AM

My take home instructions said something to the effect of eat only soft foods for the first two weeks. This was to avoid stripping a scab of prematurely or puncturing freshly exposed skin. Other than that I could eat whatever I wanted. I think there must be other variables though. How large were the tonsils when the were removed? How old is the patient? How healthy is the patient. Will they heal quickly. I haven't even been craving anything that I can't eat. Today will be day 7 out of post op and the last major part of the scab is working its way off. It has hurt terribly with the every swallow since day 1. I may have been hungry, but seldom felt like eating. My scabs started falling off at day two and are still at it. Though I expect them to be done in the next 24 to 36 hours. Then I hope to be able to eat.

I am surprised if anyone isn't given antibiotics. Infection is always best to avoid from the start.

09-14-2007, 07:12 AM

My ENT said I won't be given antibiotics! I asked why but he said you don't need them. I think it's important to have them but he says you don't need them so i don't know! Maybe there's low risk of infection with certain types of tonsillectomy - my surgeon is using coblation and not the traditional method.

09-14-2007, 11:38 AM

I don't know what to think. I took my anitbiotics for 7 days. I guess you have to assume the surgeon knows what he is doing. I think they would prescribe them if they had a problem with infections. Don't worry about it. It's something less you have to swallow every four hours. When is your surgery scheduled?

Tonsillectomy: Differences - UK & USA

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