Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsCan You Still Get It?SignsTransmissionTreatmentLength of Contagiousness

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Can You Still Get It?

Signs

Transmission

Treatment

Length of Contagiousness

You may be a stranger to strep throat after getting your tonsils removed. However, you can still get strep throat after a tonsillectomy. Atonsillectomy(surgery to remove your tonsils) decreases your chances of getting strep throat the year after the surgery. It can reduce the severity of symptoms if you become reinfected.

If you’re feeling those familiar symptoms, keep reading to learn why you may still get strep throat after removing your tonsils, the symptoms to look for, and the treatment options.

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Woman with hand on her throat, sitting at a counter talking to a healthcare provider on a tablet

Strep Throat: Still a Possibility Without Tonsils

A healthcare provider may recommend removing yourtonsilsif you experience frequentstrep throatinfections.However, there are various reasons thatyou can still get strep throat without tonsilsincluding:

Recurring Strep ThroatIf you haverecurring strep throatat the following rates, a healthcare provider may recommend removing your tonsils:Seven times in one yearFive times a year for two yearsThree times a year for three years

Recurring Strep Throat

If you haverecurring strep throatat the following rates, a healthcare provider may recommend removing your tonsils:Seven times in one yearFive times a year for two yearsThree times a year for three years

If you haverecurring strep throatat the following rates, a healthcare provider may recommend removing your tonsils:

Signs of Strep With vs. Without Tonsils

The signs of strep throat without tonsils are mostly the same as the signs with tonsils. One key difference is that people without tonsils will not experience the symptoms affecting the tonsils, and theirsymptomsmay be milder.

The most common strep throat symptoms include:

Transmission and Contagiousness

Strep throat is very contagious. People who do not have symptoms or who haveminor symptomsmay not be as infectious as people who have more severe symptoms. However, they are still contagious and can pass the bacterium on to others.

Healthcare providers typically treatstrep throatwith antibiotics likepenicillinoramoxicillin.However, getting tested to confirm strep before starting antibiotics is important. If a virus causes your symptoms, antibiotics will be ineffective and may worsen your symptoms.

Some cases of strep throat resolve independently within three to five days, so antibiotics are not always necessary. However, they can help prevent complications and the spread and help you recover faster.

If you don’t have tonsils, but you have been exposed or are feeling symptoms that could indicate strep, seek the support of a healthcare provider for testing and treatment.

Accessible Strep TreatmentIf you do not have a primary care provider, consider atelehealthappointment or visit a local walk-in clinic for strep testing and treatment. Additionally, many pharmacies offer strep tests and can prescribe antibiotics on-site. These options do not require health insurance and may be more cost-effective and efficient than a primary care provider’s office.

Accessible Strep Treatment

If you do not have a primary care provider, consider atelehealthappointment or visit a local walk-in clinic for strep testing and treatment. Additionally, many pharmacies offer strep tests and can prescribe antibiotics on-site. These options do not require health insurance and may be more cost-effective and efficient than a primary care provider’s office.

How Long to Wait Before Returning to Work/School

If you opt for antibiotic treatment for strep throat, returning to school or working 24 hours after starting the antibiotics is safe.If you have a fever, ensure you are fever-free for at least 24 hours without taking any fever-reducing medications, such as Tylenol (acetaminophen), beforereturningto school or work.

Summary

You can get strep throat after having your tonsils removed. Group AStreptococcus, the bacterium that causes redness, swelling, and inflammation in your tonsils, can also infect your throat, mouth, or other body parts. Though a tonsillectomy can decrease the number of strep infections you get the year after the surgery; it does not make you immune to strep. You can still become infected and spread the highly contagious bacteria to others.

If you don’t have your tonsils, but feel that you may have strep throat, visit a healthcare provider, such as a pharmacist or a provider at a walk-in clinic for testing and treatment.

9 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Mitchell RB, Archer SM, Ishman SL, et al.Clinical practice guideline: tonsillectomy in children (Update)—executive summary.Otolaryngol–head neck surg. 2019;160(2):187-205. doi:10.1177/0194599818807917American Academy of Family Physicians.Tonsillectomy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Strep throat.University of Pennsylvania Medicine.Strep throat (Streptococcal pharyngitis).Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Strep throat: All you need to know.Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.Strep throat.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Healthy habits: antibiotic do’s and don’ts.American Academy of Family Physicians.Strep throat.Harvard Medical School.4 symptoms that mean your child must stay home from school or daycare.

9 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Mitchell RB, Archer SM, Ishman SL, et al.Clinical practice guideline: tonsillectomy in children (Update)—executive summary.Otolaryngol–head neck surg. 2019;160(2):187-205. doi:10.1177/0194599818807917American Academy of Family Physicians.Tonsillectomy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Strep throat.University of Pennsylvania Medicine.Strep throat (Streptococcal pharyngitis).Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Strep throat: All you need to know.Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.Strep throat.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Healthy habits: antibiotic do’s and don’ts.American Academy of Family Physicians.Strep throat.Harvard Medical School.4 symptoms that mean your child must stay home from school or daycare.

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Mitchell RB, Archer SM, Ishman SL, et al.Clinical practice guideline: tonsillectomy in children (Update)—executive summary.Otolaryngol–head neck surg. 2019;160(2):187-205. doi:10.1177/0194599818807917American Academy of Family Physicians.Tonsillectomy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Strep throat.University of Pennsylvania Medicine.Strep throat (Streptococcal pharyngitis).Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Strep throat: All you need to know.Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.Strep throat.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Healthy habits: antibiotic do’s and don’ts.American Academy of Family Physicians.Strep throat.Harvard Medical School.4 symptoms that mean your child must stay home from school or daycare.

Mitchell RB, Archer SM, Ishman SL, et al.Clinical practice guideline: tonsillectomy in children (Update)—executive summary.Otolaryngol–head neck surg. 2019;160(2):187-205. doi:10.1177/0194599818807917

American Academy of Family Physicians.Tonsillectomy.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Strep throat.

University of Pennsylvania Medicine.Strep throat (Streptococcal pharyngitis).

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Strep throat: All you need to know.

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.Strep throat.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Healthy habits: antibiotic do’s and don’ts.

American Academy of Family Physicians.Strep throat.

Harvard Medical School.4 symptoms that mean your child must stay home from school or daycare.

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