How To Treat Strep Throat?
Other possible causes of an acute sore throat include:
• Throat irritation: especially in smokers or in environmental factors.
• Mononucleosis infectiosa: usually in young people who are often tired and ill for longer than a week. Usually, there are also glands in other places; liver and spleen can also be swollen.
• inflammation of the tonsils.
• Mycotic pharyngitis: white spots in the tonsils. Little redness or inflammation and patients do not really feel sick.
• Diphtheria
• Malaria: at red throat and fever and return from the tropics
Antibiotics
An acute sore throat is usually a condition that automatically heals after 5 to 7 days, even if it is caused by streptococci.
The crucial question is whether antibiotics can positively influence the clinical development of an acute sore throat. Some studies have shown that the disease duration can be shortened by one to two days, but only for streptococcal infections (up to 30%) and if the antibiotics are administered within three days after the onset of symptoms.
Furthermore, it appears that administration of antibiotics does not result in an early resumption of work or school. However, administering penicillin may be useful in reducing a streptococcal epidemic in a closed community (eg school): it can already be assumed after 48 hours that a child has a streptococcal throat.
In the case of throat infections of the viral or unknown cause, antibiotics are by no means any use.
In addition, antibiotics also have some potential drawbacks, such as stomach and intestinal burden, allergic reaction, increased risk of recurrence and, in particular, the development of resistant bacterial strains.
So it comes down to finding the possible cause as soon as possible after the onset of the symptoms. If you want to start an antibiotic in the case of an acute sore throat, this must be done within 48 hours after getting the symptoms. The problem is, however, that there are no proper diagnostic tests to quickly determine the exact cause.
Therefore, the WVVH decides that antibiotics should usually not be prescribed for an acute sore throat, except for patients at risk
(see below).
It is also important that the doctor tries to find out as soon as possible whether the acute sore throat is not caused by another serious condition. Elements that can be important:
•a sore throat lasts longer than 7 days: may indicate chronic sore throat caused by eg smoking
• coughing: in case of streptococcal infection there is no cough
• fever: a temperature above 38.5 ° C rectal can indicate streptococcal infection
• severe swallowing pain: can indicate abscess
• a sore throat is associated with severe fatigue: may indicate mononucleosis or another condition such as leukemia
Therapy
• Local means: there are no reliable studies showing the usefulness of local antiseptic and / or analgesic drugs.
• Pain relief: paracetamol is preferred, given the lower side effects than acetyl salicylate. An additional reason may be that, if removal of the tonsils is necessary, the risk of bleeding becomes too high with acetyl salicylate.
• Antibiotics are ONLY prescribed to patients at risk :
- cancer patients
- acute rheumatism
- reduced general resistance
- streptococcal infection in a closed community (school, elderly institution ...)
- toxic syndrome: severe disease state with high fever
- five times acute sore throat per year, two years in a row.
- Chronic conditions such as heart failure, heart valve problems, asthma ....
- In case of suspicion of peritonsillar abscess, leukemia or agranulocytosis or suspected other underlying disorders, a specialist should be consulted. This is also the case with recurrences of sore throat five times a year, two years in a row.
*Image source : Wikimedia Commons
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