A healthy throat and a sore throat, including uvula and tongue, showing inflamed tonsils. More about scarlet fever strep throat. See a doctor if you or your child have symptoms of strep throat. You or your child may need to be tested for strep throat. This list is not all-inclusive. Please see your doctor for any symptom that is severe or concerning. Follow up with a doctor if symptoms do not improve within a few days, get worse, or if you or your child have recurrent sore throats.
A doctor will determine what type of illness you have by asking about symptoms and doing a physical examination. Sometimes they will also swab your throat. More about rheumatic fever. Since bacteria cause strep throat, antibiotics are needed to treat the infection and prevent rheumatic fever and other complications. A doctor cannot tell if someone has strep throat just by looking in the throat. If your doctor thinks you might have strep throat, they can do a test to determine if it is the cause of your illness.
Anyone with strep throat should stay home from work, school, or daycare until they no longer have fever AND have taken antibiotics for at least 12 hours. If a sore throat is caused by a virus, antibiotics will not help. Most sore throats will get better on their own within one week.
Your doctor may prescribe other medicine or give you tips to help you feel better. More about antibiotic-resistant infections C.
Side effects can range from minor issues, like a rash, to very serious health problems, such as antibiotic-resistant infections and C. Be careful about giving over-the-counter medicines to children. If your child has a bacterial infection, antibiotics may help. But if your child has a virus, antibiotics will not help your child feel better or keep others from getting sick. The common cold and flu are both viruses. Chest colds, such as bronchitis , are also usually caused by viruses.
Bronchitis is a cough with a lot of thick, sticky phlegm or mucus. Cigarette smoke and particles in the air can also cause bronchitis. But bacteria are not usually the cause. Most sinus infections sinusitis are also caused by viruses.
The symptoms are a lot of mucus in the nose and post-nasal drip. Mucus that is colored does not necessarily mean your child has a bacterial infection. Some cases of the flu are both viral and bacterial.
For these cases, antibiotics may be needed. Sometimes bacteria can cause sinus infections, but even then the infection usually clears up on its own in a week or so. Many common ear infections also clear up on their own without antibiotics. Some sore throats, like strep throat , are bacterial infections. Symptoms include fever, redness, and trouble swallowing.
However, most children who have these symptoms do not have strep throat. Your child should have a strep test to confirm that it's strep, and then, if they're needed, the doctor will prescribe antibiotics. Side effects from antibiotics are a common reason that children go to the emergency room. These medicines can cause diarrhea or vomiting, and about 5 in children have allergies to them.
Some allergic reactions can be serious and life threatening. The misuse and overuse of antibiotics encourages bacteria to change, so that medicines don't work as well to get rid of them.
This is called "antibiotic resistance. Antibiotic-resistant infections are also more expensive to treat and harder to cure. Most antibiotics do not cost a lot. My 8-year-old daughter got strep throat last month. I thought it was just a cold, and I kept her home from school for a few days. But she wasn't getting better and she felt so miserable. I was also worried about ear infections.
She gets a lot of those too. The doctor did a strep test and suggested she take antibiotics. Amy started feeling better a few days later. I think antibiotics were the right way to go this time. My insurance doesn't pay for all of my medicines, so I try to make sure I really need the ones I do take. The last time I had a bad cold, my throat got really sore.
The pain made it hard for me to swallow. I called my doctor's office and the nurse said I could come in if I felt I needed a prescription. I thought I'd wait and see instead. I took ibuprofen and drank a lot of tea and honey, and in a few days I felt better. I'm glad I didn't spend the money on a doctor visit and medicine.
I'm pretty healthy most of the time, but this past winter I got sick. I was down for 3 or 4 days. It turns out I had an infection in my throat and tonsils.
The doctor thought I should take antibiotics because of my age and health. And I wanted to get over it as soon as possible so I could go back to my volunteer job at the local hospital.
I think the medicine helped me get back on my feet just a little sooner than if I hadn't taken it. Your personal feelings are just as important as the medical facts. Think about what matters most to you in this decision, and show how you feel about the following statements. I want to take medicine even if there's only a chance it will help me get well faster. I'm worried about my sore throat turning into an ear infection or sinus infection.
I'm not worried about my sore throat turning into an ear infection or sinus infection. I've had a sore throat for more than a week, and it's not getting better. Now that you've thought about the facts and your feelings, you may have a general idea of where you stand on this decision. Show which way you are leaning right now. How sure do you feel right now about your decision?
Use the following space to list questions, concerns, and next steps. Here's a record of your answers. You can use it to talk with your doctor or loved ones about your decision. I may not want to take medicine if it won't help me get well faster. Do antibiotics work if a sore throat is caused by a virus, such as a cold? Are you clear about which benefits and side effects matter most to you?
Do you have enough support and advice from others to make a choice? Author: Healthwise Staff. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated, disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information.
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It looks like your browser does not have JavaScript enabled. Please turn on JavaScript and try again. Important Phone Numbers. Get the facts. Your options Take antibiotics for a sore throat caused by a bacterial infection. Don't take antibiotics. Try home treatment instead. Key points to remember People often think antibiotics will cure their sore throat.
But most sore throats are caused by a virus , such as a cold. Antibiotics won't work for sore throats caused by a virus. Most of the time, sore throats go away on their own. To relieve the pain from a sore throat, you can take over-the-counter medicines such as aspirin or ibuprofen, or you can try lozenges or nasal sprays. Drink lots of fluids and get plenty of rest.
Your doctor may prescribe antibiotics to shorten the time you are able to spread strep throat —which is caused by bacteria—to others. Antibiotics will help prevent a serious but rare problem called rheumatic fever. Taking antibiotics too often or when you don't need them can be harmful and costly.
And the medicine may not work the next time you take it when you really do need it. This is called antibiotic resistance. What is a sore throat? How well do antibiotics work to treat a sore throat? What are the risks of taking antibiotics for sore throat? Antibiotics may cause side effects, such as diarrhea, vomiting, and skin rashes.
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