Sore throat – Symptoms & causes

Overview

A sore throat is pain, scratchiness or irritation of the throat that often worsens when you swallow. The most common cause of a sore throat (pharyngitis) is a viral infection, such as a cold or the flu. A sore throat caused by a virus resolves on its own.

Strep throat (streptococcal infection), a less common type of sore throat caused by bacteria, requires treatment with antibiotics to prevent complications. Other less common causes of sore throat might require more complex treatment.

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Symptoms

Symptoms of a sore throat can vary depending on the cause. Signs and symptoms might include:

• Pain or a scratchy sensation in the throat
• Pain that worsens with swallowing or talking
• Difficulty swallowing
• Sore, swollen glands in your neck or jaw
• Swollen, red tonsils
• White patches or pus on your tonsils
• A hoarse or muffled voice

Throat anatomy

The throat includes the esophagus; windpipe, also known as the trachea; voice box, also known as the larynx; tonsils; and epiglottis.

Infections causing a sore throat might result in other signs and symptoms, including:

• Fever
• Cough
• Runny nose
• Sneezing
• Body aches
• Headache
• Nausea or vomiting

When to see a doctor

Take your child to a doctor if your child’s sore throat doesn’t go away with the first drink in the morning, recommends the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Get immediate care if your child has severe signs and symptoms such as:

• Difficulty breathing
• Difficulty swallowing
• Unusual drooling, which might indicate an inability to swallow

If you’re an adult, see your doctor if you have a sore throat and any of the following associated problems, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery:

• A sore throat that is severe or lasts longer than a week
• Difficulty swallowing
• Difficulty breathing
• Difficulty opening your mouth
• Joint pain
• Earache
• Rash
• Fever higher than 101 F (38. 3 C)
• Blood in your saliva or phlegm
• Frequently recurring sore throats
• A lump in your neck
• Hoarseness lasting more than two weeks
• Swelling in your neck or face

Causes

Viruses that cause the common cold and the flu also cause most sore throats. Less often, bacterial infections cause sore throats.

Viral infections

Viral illnesses that cause a sore throat include:

• Common cold
• Flu (influenza)
• Mono (mononucleosis)
• Measles
• Chickenpox
• Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)
• Croup — a common childhood illness characterized by a harsh, barking cough

Bacterial infections

Many bacterial infections can cause a sore throat. The most common is Streptococcus pyogenes (group A streptococcus) which causes strep throat.

Other causes

Other causes of a sore throat include:

• Allergies. Allergies to pet dander, molds, dust and pollen can cause a sore throat. The problem may be complicated by postnasal drip, which can irritate and inflame the throat.
• Dryness. Dry indoor air can make your throat feel rough and scratchy. Breathing through your mouth — often because of chronic nasal congestion — also can cause a dry, sore throat.
• Irritants. Outdoor air pollution and indoor pollution such as tobacco smoke or chemicals can cause a chronic sore throat. Chewing tobacco, drinking alcohol and eating spicy foods also can irritate your throat.
• Muscle strain. You can strain muscles in your throat by yelling, talking loudly or talking for long periods without rest.

• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). GERD is a digestive system disorder in which stomach acids back up in the food pipe (esophagus).

  Other signs or symptoms may include heartburn, hoarseness, regurgitation of stomach contents and the sensation of a lump in your throat.

• HIV infection. A sore throat and other flu-like symptoms sometimes appear early after someone is infected with HIV.

  Also, someone who is HIV-positive might have a chronic or recurring sore throat due to a fungal infection called oral thrush or due to a viral infection called cytomegalovirus (CMV), which can be serious in people with compromised immune systems.

• Tumors. Cancerous tumors of the throat, tongue or voice box (larynx) can cause a sore throat. Other signs or symptoms may include hoarseness, difficulty swallowing, noisy breathing, a lump in the neck, and blood in saliva or phlegm.

Rarely, an infected area of tissue (abscess) in the throat or swelling of the small cartilage “lid” that covers the windpipe (epiglottitis) can cause a sore throat. Both can block the airway, creating a medical emergency.

Risk factors

Although anyone can get a sore throat, some factors make you more susceptible, including:

• Age. Children and teens are most likely to develop sore throats. Children ages 3 to 15 are also more likely to have strep throat, the most common bacterial infection associated with a sore throat.
• Exposure to tobacco smoke. Smoking and secondhand smoke can irritate the throat. The use of tobacco products also increases the risk of cancers of the mouth, throat and voice box.
• Allergies. Seasonal allergies or ongoing allergic reactions to dust, molds or pet dander make developing a sore throat more likely.
• Exposure to chemical irritants. Particles in the air from burning fossil fuels and common household chemicals can cause throat irritation.
• Chronic or frequent sinus infections. Drainage from your nose can irritate your throat or spread infection.
• Close quarters. Viral and bacterial infections spread easily anywhere people gather, whether in child care centers, classrooms, offices or airplanes.
• Weakened immunity. You’re more susceptible to infections in general if your resistance is low. Common causes of lowered immunity include HIV, diabetes, treatment with steroids or chemotherapy drugs, stress, fatigue, and poor diet.

Prevention

The best way to prevent sore throats is to avoid the germs that cause them and practice good hygiene. Follow these tips and teach your child to do the same:

• Wash your hands thoroughly and frequently for at least 20 seconds, especially after using the toilet, before and after eating, and after sneezing or coughing.
• Avoid touching your face. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
• Avoid sharing food, drinking glasses or utensils.
• Cough or sneeze into a tissue and throw it away, and then wash your hands. When necessary, sneeze into your elbow.
• Use alcohol-based hand sanitizers as an alternative to washing hands when soap and water aren’t available.
• Avoid touching public phones or drinking fountains with your mouth.
• Regularly clean and disinfect phones, doorknobs, light switches, remotes and computer keyboards. When you travel, clean phones, light switches and remotes in your hotel room.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick or have symptoms.

Sore throat – Symptoms & causes

Overview

A sore throat is pain, scratchiness or irritation of the throat that often worsens when you swallow. The most common cause of a sore throat (pharyngitis) is a viral infection, such as a cold or the flu. A sore throat caused by a virus resolves on its own.

Strep throat (streptococcal infection), a less common type of sore throat caused by bacteria, requires treatment with antibiotics to prevent complications. Other less common causes of sore throat might require more complex treatment.

Products & Services

Symptoms

Symptoms of a sore throat can vary depending on the cause. Signs and symptoms might include:

• Pain or a scratchy sensation in the throat
• Pain that worsens with swallowing or talking
• Difficulty swallowing
• Sore, swollen glands in your neck or jaw
• Swollen, red tonsils
• White patches or pus on your tonsils
• A hoarse or muffled voice

Throat anatomy

The throat includes the esophagus; windpipe, also known as the trachea; voice box, also known as the larynx; tonsils; and epiglottis.

Infections causing a sore throat might result in other signs and symptoms, including:

• Fever
• Cough
• Runny nose
• Sneezing
• Body aches
• Headache
• Nausea or vomiting

When to see a doctor

Take your child to a doctor if your child’s sore throat doesn’t go away with the first drink in the morning, recommends the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Get immediate care if your child has severe signs and symptoms such as:

• Difficulty breathing
• Difficulty swallowing
• Unusual drooling, which might indicate an inability to swallow

If you’re an adult, see your doctor if you have a sore throat and any of the following associated problems, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery:

• A sore throat that is severe or lasts longer than a week
• Difficulty swallowing
• Difficulty breathing
• Difficulty opening your mouth
• Joint pain
• Earache
• Rash
• Fever higher than 101 F (38.3 C)
• Blood in your saliva or phlegm
• Frequently recurring sore throats
• A lump in your neck
• Hoarseness lasting more than two weeks
• Swelling in your neck or face

Causes

Viruses that cause the common cold and the flu also cause most sore throats. Less often, bacterial infections cause sore throats.

Viral infections

Viral illnesses that cause a sore throat include:

• Common cold
• Flu (influenza)
• Mono (mononucleosis)
• Measles
• Chickenpox
• Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)
• Croup — a common childhood illness characterized by a harsh, barking cough

Bacterial infections

Many bacterial infections can cause a sore throat. The most common is Streptococcus pyogenes (group A streptococcus) which causes strep throat.

Other causes

Other causes of a sore throat include:

• Allergies. Allergies to pet dander, molds, dust and pollen can cause a sore throat. The problem may be complicated by postnasal drip, which can irritate and inflame the throat.
• Dryness. Dry indoor air can make your throat feel rough and scratchy. Breathing through your mouth — often because of chronic nasal congestion — also can cause a dry, sore throat.
• Irritants. Outdoor air pollution and indoor pollution such as tobacco smoke or chemicals can cause a chronic sore throat. Chewing tobacco, drinking alcohol and eating spicy foods also can irritate your throat.
• Muscle strain. You can strain muscles in your throat by yelling, talking loudly or talking for long periods without rest.

• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). GERD is a digestive system disorder in which stomach acids back up in the food pipe (esophagus).

  Other signs or symptoms may include heartburn, hoarseness, regurgitation of stomach contents and the sensation of a lump in your throat.

• HIV infection. A sore throat and other flu-like symptoms sometimes appear early after someone is infected with HIV.

  Also, someone who is HIV-positive might have a chronic or recurring sore throat due to a fungal infection called oral thrush or due to a viral infection called cytomegalovirus (CMV), which can be serious in people with compromised immune systems.

• Tumors. Cancerous tumors of the throat, tongue or voice box (larynx) can cause a sore throat. Other signs or symptoms may include hoarseness, difficulty swallowing, noisy breathing, a lump in the neck, and blood in saliva or phlegm.

Rarely, an infected area of tissue (abscess) in the throat or swelling of the small cartilage “lid” that covers the windpipe (epiglottitis) can cause a sore throat. Both can block the airway, creating a medical emergency.

Risk factors

Although anyone can get a sore throat, some factors make you more susceptible, including:

• Age. Children and teens are most likely to develop sore throats. Children ages 3 to 15 are also more likely to have strep throat, the most common bacterial infection associated with a sore throat.
• Exposure to tobacco smoke. Smoking and secondhand smoke can irritate the throat. The use of tobacco products also increases the risk of cancers of the mouth, throat and voice box.
• Allergies. Seasonal allergies or ongoing allergic reactions to dust, molds or pet dander make developing a sore throat more likely.
• Exposure to chemical irritants. Particles in the air from burning fossil fuels and common household chemicals can cause throat irritation.
• Chronic or frequent sinus infections. Drainage from your nose can irritate your throat or spread infection.
• Close quarters. Viral and bacterial infections spread easily anywhere people gather, whether in child care centers, classrooms, offices or airplanes.
• Weakened immunity. You’re more susceptible to infections in general if your resistance is low. Common causes of lowered immunity include HIV, diabetes, treatment with steroids or chemotherapy drugs, stress, fatigue, and poor diet.

Prevention

The best way to prevent sore throats is to avoid the germs that cause them and practice good hygiene. Follow these tips and teach your child to do the same:

• Wash your hands thoroughly and frequently for at least 20 seconds, especially after using the toilet, before and after eating, and after sneezing or coughing.
• Avoid touching your face. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
• Avoid sharing food, drinking glasses or utensils.
• Cough or sneeze into a tissue and throw it away, and then wash your hands. When necessary, sneeze into your elbow.
• Use alcohol-based hand sanitizers as an alternative to washing hands when soap and water aren’t available.
• Avoid touching public phones or drinking fountains with your mouth.
• Regularly clean and disinfect phones, doorknobs, light switches, remotes and computer keyboards. When you travel, clean phones, light switches and remotes in your hotel room.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick or have symptoms.

Sore throat – Article I Clinic for evidence-based medicine NEPLACEBO

Author –
Lukankina Irina Aleksandrovna

10/26/2022

Every person has experienced a sore throat at least once. Most often, this happens for the first time in childhood, with various viral infections. But even in adulthood it can be a common problem.

Older children complain on their own that they have a sore throat or that it hurts to swallow. Babies can’t always explain what’s bothering them. More often they begin to eat poorly, refuse to drink. With severe pain in the throat, they can even swallow saliva poorly.

The most common causes of sore throats are infections. Both viral and bacterial.

Effective sore throat remedies are surprisingly sold in the store and not in the Pharmacy.

For example:

• cool drinks and melted ice cream,
• any lollipops to taste, just remember that up to 4-5 years old children can accidentally inhale hard candy and suffocate, so the method is age-limited,
• Sucking on a piece of ice, 9001 8
• Gargling with a salt solution: Dissolve half a teaspoon of salt in a glass of warm water. Children usually learn to gargle properly by about 6 years of age,
• For very severe sore throats, general pain medications such as ibuprofen or paracetamol can be used. These are the same remedies that you give children to reduce fever.

You may find some of the recommendations strange or questionable. Indeed, in our childhood it was customary to treat differently, and even now some doctors of the old school can advise warm drinks and prohibit ice cream.

However, there are studies confirming the safety of such recommendations. It is well known that cold dulls pain. In addition, scientists tested whether throat pain pills really work better than plain lozenges and found that there is no difference. Only pharmaceutical lozenges are usually more expensive and more likely to cause allergies and other side effects. The same results were obtained when comparing salt with special products and sprays – the effectiveness of the saline solution is not inferior, it is available to everyone and does not cause side effects.

Other things to know before you see a doctor:

Do not take antibiotics for a sore throat on your own. The infection may turn out to be viral, in which case the drug will not only be useless, but also harmful.

When exactly to see a doctor:

• sore throat persists for more than three days,
• pain increases with time,
• pain is accompanied by swallowing problems, difficulty drinking water and swallowing saliva,
• sore throat accompanied by rashes on the body .

At the Neplacebo clinic in Voronezh, pediatricians and an ENT doctor see children with sore throats, while adults are treated by therapists and an ENT doctor.

Sources:

https://www.uptodate.com/contents/the-common-cold-in-children-management-and-prevention?search=common%20cold&source=search_result&selectedTitle=2~150&usage_type=default&display_rank=2

https://www.uptodate.com/contents/the-common-cold-in-adults-treatment-and-prevention?search=common%20cold&topicRef=16629&source=see_link

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Sore throat and other signs of chronic tonsillitis – Saiko

Tonsils are our body’s first line of defense against viruses and bacteria. They are located on the back of the pharynx and consist of lymphoid tissue. In structure, the tonsils are similar to a rock pitted with caves, that is, they consist of a porous tissue with lacunae. That is why a common sore throat, if it is not completely cured, can turn into a chronic one, when the gaps are filled with dead bacteria or viruses, protective cells, pus and cannot recover. Because of this, with any hypothermia or contact with an infection, the tonsils become inflamed and another exacerbation begins.

Most often, children suffer from chronic tonsillitis: they have not yet developed the mechanisms of the body’s immune defense, and constant contacts in children’s groups provoke frequent inflammation of the tonsils, which easily becomes chronic.

How it manifests

Chronic tonsillitis is manifested by pain in the throat – it can be either a uniform pain over the entire surface of the throat, or one-sided. It also becomes painful to swallow, and with enlarged tonsils, snoring or difficulty breathing may occur. Small children refuse to eat and sleep poorly. And there may be common manifestations of SARS: high fever, runny nose, cough and others.

What complications can there be? Chronic untreated tonsillitis can lead to sleep apnea (temporary cessation of breathing during sleep), as well as to the spread of infection beyond the tonsils, then a peritonsillar abscess develops, which is treated only in the operating room.

If the cause of the disease is streptococcus bacteria, then antibiotic treatment is necessary, otherwise the disease can lead to inflammation of the joints, heart and kidneys – this is how rheumatic fever, a serious complication of streptococcal infection, manifests itself. Therefore, it is so important to consult a doctor for the treatment of tonsillitis in order to reduce the risk of complications and the transition to a chronic form.

How to make a diagnosis

On examination, the doctor will pay attention to the tonsils, their shape, color and size. He will also look at the lymph nodes on the neck and behind the ears, ask about well-being and general condition, find out how often they got sick and with what symptoms.

To determine the cause of the disease, a complete blood count and a test for streptococcal infection are ordered.

How to treat

During exacerbations, treatment depends on the source of the infection. Viral tonsillitis is treated symptomatically: antipyretic, warm drink, antiseptic rinse and pain lozenges. With a bacterial infection, antibiotics are necessarily added to the treatment regimen.

In the interval between exacerbations of chronic tonsillitis, ENT doctors recommend washing the tonsils – this can reduce the frequency of exacerbations and reduce the risk of surgery. You can rinse with a syringe or the Tonsillor apparatus. Both methods have their pros and cons.

Syringe flushing is cheaper and can be done at any clinic, but the result depends on the skill of the otorhinolaryngologist and in any case damage to the tonsils is possible. In addition, it is more difficult to wash the most distant lacunae with a syringe, and this increases the risk of exacerbations of chronic tonsillitis.

Tonsillor device is more expensive, it can be found not in all clinics and not all specialists know how to use it. There are also contraindications to it, for example, it cannot be used to treat tonsillitis during pregnancy. On the other hand, the vacuum cleans the lacunae much more thoroughly, and the administration of the drug using low-frequency ultrasound accelerates the healing of damaged lacunae. As a result, pathogenic foci are destroyed and the likelihood of recurrence of the disease is reduced.

The procedure is carried out two weeks after the last exacerbation. If necessary, the back wall of the pharynx is anesthetized, and the whole procedure lasts about 15 minutes.

When to operate

The operation is performed if the tonsils do not perform their function and the usual treatment has ceased to help.