ear, nose, and throat disorders
How To Drain a Peritonsillar Abscess
Aftercare for Draining a Peritonsillar Abscess
Observe the patient for 1 hour for complications such as bleeding, and to ensure that the patient can tolerate fluids. Discharge on oral antibiotics and warm saline rinses to follow up in 24 hours Patients with excessive bleeding, aspiration, or who are unable to take oral antibiotics require prolonged observation or hospitalization. Patients who have had multiple abscesses should usually have elective tonsillectomy after 4 to 6 weeks to prevent abscess recurrence. Antibiotics should be continued for 10 days. Examples of appropriate empiric drugs are penicillin, 1st-generation cephalosporins, andclindamycin. Preferably, culture-directed antibiotics are then prescribed. If methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus(MRSA) is a possibility, empiric antibiotics should be broadened to cover this. 