Throat redness, constant swelling, constant spitting of mucus...etc...

[maikeru]

For the last 5 years or so my tonsils have been constantly red...sometimes good, sometimes bad...I always have white stuff on my tonsils and I am always a little short of breath.  I spit up mucus every 15 minutes or so...swollen throat almost 365 days a year...and sometimes when I get a fever, the coughing gets so bad that I can sleep for 2 days...BUT I rarely get a fever...

So, the ear, nose, throat doctor says its just a cold...FOR 5 years?  The doctor just looks in my ears, nose and throat, asks a few questions then he gives me some medicine for 4 days, but it only brings it down...but it starts back up again after a day or two...

So my question is ...What can I do to care for my throat and what can I ask my doctor to do so I can find out if it is or isn't tonsilitis?

[National Jewish]

It is possible that this is from a chronic sinus inflammation or infection.  It may be a good idea to get a CT of the sinuses to see if they are involved.  If this is the case, a more prolonged course of antibiotics, decongestants and possibly a nasal inhaled steroid spray may be necessary.  Making the diagnosis is the first step to getting rid of this problem.