Act One

Act Two

Act Three

Tonsillectomies are one of the most common operations both today and historically, however, it has always been mired in controversy. In ancient times, this was touted as being either life-saving or completely unnecessary and continued to be a polarising topic into the twentieth century.

An evidence based approach has helped to provide guidelines such as the Paradise criteria. However, there is always nuance and particular patient circumstances that play a role in deciding if surgical management is appropriate. We talk to one of Australia’s foremost experts to help us navigate this topic.

This is the story of Tonsillectomies.

Our special guest:

Dr Eric Levi is a triple-Fellowship trained Specialist Otolaryngologist (Ear Nose & Throat), Head & Neck Surgeon based in Melbourne, Australia. He has completed Fellowships in Head & Neck Surgery, Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery and Paediatric Otolaryngology.

Tonsillectomies are one of the most common operations both today and historically, however, it has always been mired in controversy. In ancient times, this was touted as being either life-saving or completely unnecessary and continued to be a polarising topic into the twentieth century.
An evidence based approach has helped to provide guidelines such as the Paradise criteria. However, there is always nuance and particular patient circumstances that play a role in deciding if surgical management is appropriate. We talk to one of Australia’s foremost experts to help us navigate this topic.
This is the story of Tonsillectomies.
Our special guest:
Dr Eric Levi is a triple-Fellowship trained Specialist Otolaryngologist (Ear Nose &amp; Throat), Head &amp; Neck Surgeon based in Melbourne, Australia. He has completed Fellowships in Head &amp; Neck Surgery, Facial Plastic &amp; Reconstructive Surgery and Paediatric Otolaryngology.

Welcome to the This Medical Life podcast. Our mission is to share stories about the triumphs and tragedies of diseases and illnesses from ancient times up until what we know today. It is about those scientific and medical minds who came before us and how, every single day, we stand on the shoulders of giants. This is a podcast about the stories of medicine.


Hosted by Dr. Travis Brown and Steve Davis, our target audience is General Practitioners, medical students, and other health professionals. We hope to educate, inspire and celebrate those who choose to care for others in their profession. From experience, we know that our audience extends beyond these fields and would like to welcome anyone to listen. The stories of those who came before us are nothing short of remarkable and we hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

Production by Tim Whiffen

Design by Tom Buzz

Advertisement