Is It Strep Throat? Tips for Recognizing and Treating Strep Throat
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Health Tip of the Week When your child complains of a sore throat or pain while swallowing, you probably start wondering if it’s strep throat.
Strep throat is a throat infection caused by a bacteria called Group A streptococcus. The bacteria can be spread from person to person through airborne droplets or saliva, such as when sharing food or drinks.
Strep can look different from person to person. While some kids might look fairly ill, others won’t be as bothered by symptoms. In addition to the standard sore throat and painful swallowing, some other signs and symptoms of strep throat may include:
Strep throat typically does not cause a bad cough, profuse runny nose, ulcers in the throat, or laryngitis. If your child has these other symptoms in addition to a sore throat, you can be fairly sure they do NOT have strep.
If you suspect your child has strep throat, call your pediatrician.
If it is strep, your child will need an antibiotic to prevent complications. The good news: Within a day of taking the first dose of antibiotic, your child should begin to feel better, and once they are on antibiotics for over 12 hours, they are no longer contagious. However, be sure to finish the entire course of the antibiotic, even if your child feels better partway through the treatment.
Whether your child has strep or not, there are many ways to soothe a sore throat.
Short-term complications of strep throat include abscesses (pockets of pus) and, while rare, invasive infections. Bacteria like group A strep can move beyond the throat or skin and enter the bloodstream, lungs, fluid in the spinal cord, or other places inside the body where they would not typically live. Invasive group A strep infections are severe and can cause diseases like pneumonia, sepsis, toxic shock syndrome, and a serious skin and tissue infection called necrotizing fasciitis.
Longer term complications of strep throat include heart valve issues and kidney issues. If your child with strep throat shows the following, call or see a doctor:
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), up to 30% of children with a sore throat have strep throat. Hopefully, your child is not one of them.
Contributed by: Julie Kardos, MD, FAAP, Naline Lai, MD, FAAP
Categories: Throat conditions
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