Management Strategies of Peritonsillar Abscess in the Tropics: A Survey of Surgeons’ Preference

Peritonsillar abscess (PTA) or Quinsy is one of the common abscesses of the head and neck that requires urgent attention. Its treatment may often require hospital admission. Needle aspiration, incision & drainage and tonsillectomy have been the various treatment policies available depending on surgeon’s preference. We present a survey of current practices in the management of PTA of practicing ENT surgeons in Nigeria. Questionnaires were mailed to members of the Otorhinolaryngological Society of Nigeria (ORLSON). Of the 60 surgeons surveyed, 56.7 % advise tonsillectomy in patients with history of recurrence, 20 % when there is previous history of tonsillitis and 23.3 % in patients with single attack of PTA. Overall 96.7 % of surgeons advises interval tonsillectomy and only 3.3 % advice abscess/quinsy tonsillectomy. There is paucity of literature on PTA in the tropical region, the survey therefore serves as a baseline information for further research especially outcome based in order to establish a standard criteria for choice of a treatment policy in our region. We suggest maintaining the policy of interval tonsillectomy in the appropriate patients for the time being.