title: Tonsillar Surface Micro Flora: Does it Truly Represent Pathological Tonsillar Flora?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the best method of identifying core tonsillar flora.
  
  
  METHODS
  Quasi-experimental study.
  
  
  METHODS
  ENT Department, Combined Military Hospital, Lahore, from September 2013 to October 2015.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eighty-seven patients of recurrent tonsillitis undergoing tonsillectomy were included. All the patients, after being anaesthetised, had surface swabs taken from the tonsillar surface followed by tonsillar aspiration with a 5cc syringe. Following tonsillectomy, the tonsils were sent for culture of core flora. All three specimens from each patient were cultured according to established criteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The patient population had 33 (37%) female and 54 (62%) male patients. Flora of 12 (13.8%) surface swabs and 68 (78.2%) tonsillar aspirates matched the flora cultured from core of the tonsils. Chi-square test showed this difference to be significant (p-value <0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Tonsillar aspiration gave a much more realistic picture of the tonsillar core flora as compared to surface swabs.
authors.affiliation: Department of ENT, Combined Military Hospital (CMH), Lahore.
authors.forename: Syed Nadeem Ul
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Haq
authors.affiliation: Department of ENT, PAF Hospital, Mianwali.
authors.forename: Zeeshan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ayub
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, PAF Hospital, Mianwali.
authors.forename: Azeema
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ahmed
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D064307:Microbiota; D014066:Palatine Tonsil / Q000382:microbiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013291:Streptococcus / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014068:Tonsillectomy / Q000379:methods; D014069:Tonsillitis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000601:surgery*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents