Do Tonsillectomy's Work??

I had this operation at around the age of 10 and it did not produce much in the way of improvements. I am now 74 and I'm still prone to respiratory infections, so I do not have much faith in the op. My first attack of P was at 22 so I cannot see what influence having the op did to prevent my first scrape with P.

For me, it did! I was on fumaric acid esters, so was going in for regular blood tests. They found that I had a streptococcal infection on about 6 occasions within a year, despite never having had a sore throat. I talked to a specialist ENT doctor at the NHS about whether this was likely to be triggering guttate psoriasis, which was in turn developing into plaque psoriasis. He said there wasn't enough evidence to suggest that was the case (only 14 cases of documented tonsillectomy - psoriasis impact studies in the world, with about 11 of those seeing big improvements, from memory). Luckily for me I have private health insurance, and the recurring throat infections meant I was eligible for a tonsillectomy. Interestingly enough, the surgeon afterwards told me I had loads of scarring, which is strange seeing as I have never really suffered from sore throats (just psoriasis since the age of 2). After the operation (wow was it a SERIOUSLY painful recovery by the way), I had a bout of light therapy to really give it a fighting chance to work. Normally I relapse 6 weeks after UVB but, *touch wood* it has been a year now and I am simply managing my psoriasis with topical treatments only, having not needed to go on immunosuppressant oral tablets again. My psoriasis just feels more manageable and less aggressive. Obviously every case is different but I'd say if you can find out whether you suffer from strep throat, it is definitely an avenue worth exploring! Let me know how you get on :)

Hi. I have recently been diagnosed with Guttate Psoriasis a couple of months back, and I can honestly say that it is driving me crazy. I feel that i am unable to carry on with my normal lifestyle such as going swimming. I am am covered. Prior to my diagnosis, i had been getting very bad throat infections and was refered to an ENT specialist who will be taking out my tonsils in the New Year. I was very glad to read about your experience this evening PonkieG, it has made me feel more positive about the sitiuation.

That's great - it definitely sounds like they are linked then, and that a tonsillectomy should help. I found it useful to have phototherapy around the tonsillectomy just to give it the best fighting chance of working (i.e. clearing the skin before the operation without using steroids), though not sure how useful light therapy is for guttate psoriasis. Be prepared to be in pain after the operation, but the pain for a couple of weeks is no way near as bad as the pain of having to constantly plan your life around psoriasis (in my opinion)! Best of luck xxxx

Thank you all for replying back, this information has been more than useful. All the best for the future