tonsillectomy
noun
Did you know?
The tonsils are the areas of tissue that you can see in the mirror on both sides of your throat (not to be confused with the uvula, which hangs down in the middle). Tonsillectomy, the most common surgery performed on children in the U.S., is intended to relieve tonsillitis, or inflammation of the tonsils (usually by strep or staph bacteria). But the fact is, tonsillitis can often be successfully treated with antibiotics, which means that surgery, including the week or two of pain and discomfort that follows it, is generally unnecessary.
Examples of tonsillectomy in a Sentence
Pao Vang, M.d., Chicago Tribune, 5 May 2023
Some people think tonsillectomies are only for children under 12.
—Pao Vang, M.d., Chicago Tribune, 5 May 2023
The surgery, called a tonsillectomy, is usually only recommended if your child is getting strep seven or more times in one year.
—Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 5 Dec. 2022
From there, if someone has repeated symptomatic strep infections during a fairly short period of time, their doctor may recommend a tonsillectomy, the surgical removal of the tonsils, to prevent further infections.
—Maggie O'Neill, SELF, 22 Mar. 2023
For example, a child may need a tonsillectomy to relieve sleep apnea, which causes breathing trouble during sleep, Sanford explained.
—Nada Hassanein, USA TODAY, 2 Dec. 2022
One of the young filmmaker's first jobs was for none other than Mr. Rogers himself; Romero shot a sequence for Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood in which the eponymous gentleman undergoes a tonsillectomy.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 19 Jan. 2023
The Mavericks announced that guard Frank Ntilikina underwent a tonsillectomy earlier in the week.
—Dallas News, 15 Apr. 2022
On December 9, 2013, 13-year-old Jahi McMath was checked in to Oakland Children’s Hospital in California for a routine tonsillectomy.
—Esther Landhuis, Popular Mechanics, 12 Dec. 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tonsillectomy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Tonsillectomy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tonsillectomy. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
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tonsillectomy
noun
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tonsillectomy
noun
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