Tonsillectomy for the treatment of halitosis

Halitosis, or oral malodor, is a term used to describe noticeably unpleasant odors exhaled in breathing whether the smell is from an oral source or not. Oral causes have been proposed to be responsible for the majority of halitosis complaints. The study aims to investigate the tonsils as an origin of halitosis and to assess the efficacy of tonsillectomy for the treatment of oral bad breath caused by chronic tonsillitis.

After excluding dental, periodontal, sinonasal, oral, pulmonary, and gastroenterological diseases as the origin of halitosis, forty-four patients with halitosis caused by chronic tonsillitis which proved by positive Finkelstein's tonsil smelling test (pressing the tonsils and smelling the squeezed discharge), were included in the study. All patients were treated by tonsillectomy. Subjective and objective postoperative assessment was based on self-and-family report and clinical assessment. Patients were reviewed after 4 and 8 weeks postoperatively.

Complete improvement of halitosis occurred in 31 patients (70.4%) after 4 weeks, this value increased to 35 patients (79.5%) in the second review after 8 weeks.

Tonsillectomy is significantly effective procedure for the treatment of halitosis caused by chronic tonsillitis.