Sore Throats

Soar throats are very common in children. They have four main causes:

1. Allergy with post nasal congestion and scratchy feeling in throat - Generally humidity and treating the allergy with appropriate decongestion antihistamine is helpful.  Often associated with congestion - not much fever (if any).

2. Viral colds - similar to above with nasal congestion and cough.   Again, antibiotics are of no help for either of these first two causes.

3. Viral Tonsillitis / Pharyngitis - Here fever is common, may feel very bad and front part under mouth is often sore to touch. Can have pus on tonsils and look whitish.  We do a culture of throat to determine if antibiotics are needed. Person can be quite ill, weak, and can run a very high fever with either a viral sore throat or Bacterial Tonsillitis.  With viral tonsillitis the throat culture is NEGATIVE, thus no antibiotics are given.

4. Bacterial Tonsillitis - (Strept Throat) This is caused by the bacteria known as Beta Strept - group A.  It classically comes quickly with a significant fever and swelling of anterior cervical nodes.  Can be almost identical to number three above. Only way to really differentiate causes (etiologies) is with throat culture. We get results within five minutes and can then determine need for antibiotics.   We try to restrict antibiotics for bacteria because antibiotics do not help viruses.  Strept throat culture is POSITIVE with bacterial tonsillitis.