House Call: Surviving sore throat season
Just before winter break, some local school classrooms were down by five or more students daily due to sickness. It is a sure sign that we are in high gear for cold and flu season. That means that you, a friend of yours or someone in your family may be experiencing a sore throat. Most sore throats are caused by these viral infections, and will resolve by themselves over time. Other viral illnesses causing sore throat include mononucleosis, measles and chickenpox. Sore throats caused by viruses will not go away faster with antibiotic treatment.
A sore throat may also be caused by bacterial infections like strep throat, whooping cough or diphtheria. In these cases, a visit to your health care provider is necessary for treatment to get rid of the infection. Untreated strep throat can result in rheumatic fever and heart damage. Whooping cough and diphtheria can be deadly in very young children.
Untreated allergies can cause postnasal drip, which in turn causes a sore throat. Other causes of sore throats more likely to be seen in adults than children include gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), HIV infections and tumors.
So how do you decide whether to proceed with home care to ease discomfort or see your health care provider?
If your child has a sore throat, the American Academy of Pediatricians recommends calling your health care provider in these situations:
• Difficulty breathing
• Great difficulty swallowing fluids or saliva
• Stiff neck
• Signs of dehydration (very dry mouth, no tears when crying and no urine for more than 8 hours)
• Purple or blood-colored spots or dots on skin
• Fever over 104 degrees and not improved two hours after fever medicine
• Severe sore throat pain not improved two hours after taking ibuprofen
• Widespread pink rash
• Earache or sinus pain/pressure
• Fever present for more than three days
• Fever returns after gone for more than 24 hours
• Younger than 2 years old
• Exposure to strep within the previous seven days
• Sores present on the skin
• Sore throat persists more than 48 hours
• Sore throat with cold/cough symptoms present more than five days
For an adult with a sore throat, reasons for calling your health care provider are similar:
• A sore throat lasting longer than a week
• Difficulty swallowing
• Difficulty breathing
• Difficulty opening your mouth
• Joint pain
• Earache
• Rash
• Fever higher than 101 degrees
• Blood in saliva or phlegm
• Frequently recurring sore throats
• A lump in your neck
• Hoarseness lasting more than two weeks
For both adults and children, a very red throat with white spots is also a reason to be seen right away as this could be strep throat.
The best way to prevent sore throats is by reducing your risk of infection. Wash hands thoroughly and frequently; try not to share food, drinking glasses or utensils; use alcohol-based hand sanitizers when soap and water are not available; do not touch drinking fountains with your mouth; periodically clean telephones, remote controls, tablets and keyboards with sanitizing wipes; and avoid close contact with people who are sick. Whooping cough and diphtheria are both preventable with vaccines.
If you wake up with a sore throat, stay home if possible to avoid spreading it to others. You can ease the discomfort with warm drinks (broth or herbal tea with honey), Popcicles, saltwater gargles (1 teaspoon of salt in 8 ounces of warm water), humidified air, throat lozenges (do NOT give lozenges to children younger than 4), throat sprays, sinus rinses and over-the-counter pain relievers (ibuprofen or acetaminophen). Get rest, and if you have concerning symptoms, seek medical help. And feel better soon.