Treatment Choice - Treatment Choice | Compare Prices | Find Hospital | Tonsillitis is inflammation of the tonsils. It's usually caused by a viral infection or, less commonly, a bacterial infection.<br/>It's a common type of infection in children, although it can sometimes affect adults.<br/>In most cases, tonsillitis gets better within a week. However, a small number of children and adults have tonsillitis for longer or it keeps returning. This is known as chronic tonsillitis and surgical treatment may be needed.<br/>Surgery to remove the tonsils (a tonsillectomy) is usually only recommended in cases where there have been several severe episodes of tonsillitis over a long period of time, or if repeated episodes disrupt normal activities.