Tonsil Stones

Just wonder how many might have them,I get a small one every so often.  They do not smell good due to

bacteria.  That being said the tonsil is part of your immune system,makes you wonder. But many none UC people get them.  Have not been able to connect any immune dysfunction with them,but the docs don't seem to think they are any sort of a big deal.  But then again all that extra bacteria sitting in your throat/mouth,and the mouth being the first part of your digestive system. Since they have no idea what causes UC,might there be other rocks that need to be turned over. Or I should say leave no stone unturned. Yes I still have my tonsils,but and ENT once told me they shrink as you age.

Old Mike

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonsillolith

Post Edited (Old Mike) : 1/17/2013 8:21:01 PM (GMT-7)

I have them, and they have been bugging me. Gargling with salt water is supposed to help..which I need to start doing. I was removing them with cotton swabs for awhile, and then I got scared to do that. I feel like all of my colds start in the area from my tonsils to my ears.

I get those!! I still have my tonsils, and docs are always surprised. Mine relate to my weight, too - the fatter I am, the bigger the darn things are.

I've had them since I was a kid, and my first UC flare was just this year (I'm 31). Might be related...no idea.

I can always tell they are in there because my throat starts to hurt. I think "either I'm getting sick or one of those things is stuck in my throat." I can usually pop them out with the round end of something - like a makeup brush.

I didn't know what the heck they were until a few years ago!

I get them too!

My tonsils are on the larger size and I get those things all the time. They seem to come and go. I may not have them for a month and then get them for a few months in a row I get them on both sides. Soooo gross but I pick them out.

I am so glad to know that other people get these and dig them out! Tonsil stones...didn't realize they had a real name. I always thought it was just stinky stuff stuck in my throat.

Do y'all tend to get them more while flaring or when you are not? I was thinking that I tend to get them when my colon is behaving. Maybe being on prednisone has kept them away.

Sibby said...
Probably how I got UC later on in life. On-and-off antibiotic's for almost two years when I was a kid due to my tonsils.

My story exactly. I have really scarred tonsils with deep crypts and I had had five courses of antibiotics for strep in one season before I was diagnosed with UC.

Incidentally, since being on immunosuppressants for UC my tonsils have been totally clear and are way less swollen. I'm really curious to see what happens now that my colon is out and I'm stopping methotrexate and Remicade...

Have them sometimes too. But I don't think they are IBD related. I know people without IBD get them too. I read somewhere they are an example of a biofilm. 

You can't get them if you had your tonsils removed, correct?

I have never heard of a tonsil stone but do know an interesting tonsil fact. If they leave a tiny bit of your tonsils when taking out your tonsils they can grow back. This happened to my mom and me.

Yep, those tonsil buggers are a likely source of trouble. I'm rinsing nightly with salt water. Also found out recently that the Rx dental rinse Peridex works wonders on my tonsils-- definitely shrinks them & gets rid of bacteria. One has to dab it on tonsil with a swab because using as a rinse would stain teeth. I asked my gastro why they don't collaborate with ENTs to devise safer treatment for sinus & tonsil ailments-- since these seem to throw many victims into UC. Gastro assured me that they are aware of this, "but the underlying science isn't there yet". (sigh) / Old Hat (32 yrs with left-sided UC; presently in remission taking brandname Colazal)

miracles...never heard of Key Stones..must be something someone coined and stuck.

They're caused my mucus, sloughing of tissue, food, bacteria, etc. They form in the crypts of the tonsils.

q

Oh goodness, I hate those stanky things. Mine would dislodge when I sneezed. I didn't know what they were till my sister was talking about them a few years ago. I didn't know where they came from, just that they usually flew into my tissue when I sneezed (I go out the mouth, nose sneezes are too messy for me) and stank to high heaven, kinda like old poo. Now I knock them out with the Waterpik and let me tell you, my sister is SO jealous of my Waterpik because she's obsessed with plucking her stones out and expressing her tonsils also. gross. I haven't had one in a couple years...at least none that I've been able to sneeze out or waterpik.