The advisability of removing the palatine tonsils as a prophylactic measure for the various forms of endocarditis has long been a subject of controversy among clinicians. The advocates of tonsillectomy point out the decreased incidence of chronic cardiac disease in tonsillectomized persons, as borne out by certain studies.1 Their opponents, basing their opinions on studies of other groups, maintain that routine removal of tonsils for the prevention of cardiac disease is not based on conclusive data.2 Furthermore, some clinicians contend that actual harm can be done by removal of the tonsils,3 not only in the operative mortality but also in respect to the development of infections of the respiratory tract.
In a previously reported study,4 it was shown that a virulent hemolytic streptococcus obtained from a pneumonic lesion in a dog produced endocarditis in 10 of 25 dogs, i. e., in 40 per cent when injected intravenously. In veiw of