“Is it dangerous to have tonsils removed?”

Undergoing any surgical procedure can be dangerous. The risks and benefits of the procedure need to be weighed carefully. When it comes to tonsillectomy, I always encourage my patients to think carefully about this and I make sure that there are strong indications that the benefits of having a tonsillectomy our worth the potential risks of the surgery. There are many risks associated with having her tonsils removed. One of the things that we as surgeons consider as the biggest risk with regards to tonsillectomy is postoperative hemorrhage. This can occur days after the surgery and can be severe enough to require the patient to go back under anesthesia to stop the bleeding. Additional risks of having her tonsils removed include: Taste disturbance, numbness of a portion of the tongue, reflux of food or liquid up the back of the nose, vocal resonance changes, and potential pulmonary complications especially if the patient has a known history of obstructive sleep apnea.