Acute Tonsillitis in Young Men: Etiological Agents and Their Differentiation

Group A beta-hemolytic streptococci were found in 38% of 257 young men in military service with acute tonsillitis. Of the 108 patients tested also for viral antibodies, 42% showed a 4-fold rise in antibody titers. Adenovirus was the most frequent (31%) nonstreptococcal agent, followed by Epstein-Barr virus (6%), and influenza virus (5%). Non-group A streptococci were isolated in about the same proportion (18%) as in healthy control subjects. Other data also suggested that these bacteria were carried and not true infecting organisms. Group A streptococci and adenovirus occurred in mixed infection in 9% of the 108 cases. In group A streptococcal tonsillitis compared to others, white blood cell counts were higher (13.3 vs. 8.3 x 10(9)/l, p less than 0.01), C-reactive protein was higher (70 vs. 48 mg/l, p less than 0.01), tonsillitis was more often non-exudative (p less than 0.05), and the duration of fever was shorter (2.2 vs. 3.5 days, p less than 0.01), while there was no difference in the height of the fever or erythrocyte sedimentation rate.