Sore throats account for over 13 million doctor office visits annually.
At South Central Family Practice Clinic in Soldotna, Alaska, Gladys Bailon, MD,
offers primary and urgent care to patients of all ages. So, not surprisingly, she’s seen her share of sore throats.
A sore throat can have many causes, and it isn’t always easy to discern whether your child's or your sore throat warrants medical intervention.
In this blog, Dr. Bailon offers guidelines to help you decide.
Many conditions cause sore throats — some trivial and some serious. Understanding this is essential so that you know when to seek medical help. Some of the major culprits include:
Your immune system protects your body from various harmful substances, from environmental toxins to pathogens like bacteria and viruses. However, sometimes it responds to a substance that should be innocuous, like pollen, pet dander, or certain foods. The substances that provoke the immune response are collectively called allergens.
Airborne allergies commonly cause symptoms that include:
This allergic response causes relatively mild symptoms, including a sore throat. They’re most effectively handled with OTC allergy medications (antihistamines) and decongestants. If the symptoms become more severe, or if you react to many different allergens, you may need to see an allergist. In any event, the sore throat here is usually nothing to worry about.
A post-nasal drip, also called rhinitis (from the Greek word for nose), occurs when excess mucus drains from the sinuses behind the nose and trickles down the back of the throat, often leading to a persistent sore or scratchy throat. Rhinitis can be caused by a variety of things, including weather changes, allergies, spicy food, dry air, and sinus medications.
Along with the sore throat, symptoms of a post-nasal drip include:
Post-nasal drips are generally treated with OTC remedies, including sinus rinses and washes, or sometimes prescription medications, depending on the severity. You may need to see a doctor for ongoing issues, but it’s rarely an emergency situation.
Sore throats can be caused either by a bacterial or viral infection. Colds and the flu both stem from viral infections. Colds may come from a rhinovirus, or sometimes a coronavirus, and flu from the influenza virus. In addition to the sore throat, both illnesses cause a runny nose, cough, body aches, and fatigue; you only get chills and fever with the flu.
Both colds and influenza tax your immune systems, making them less efficient at fighting off other pathogens. If you have a sore throat with either condition, you have to consider you may have a secondary infection, like strep throat, caused by Group A Streptococcus bacteria.
You’ll know you may have strep throat if you experience:
If you suspect strep throat, come see Dr. Bailon. During your appointment, she will take a throat culture to determine if Streptococcus is to blame or if something else is. Rapid strep tests can give her results within minutes, and if it’s strep, you can pick up your antibiotic on the way home.
Sore throats are uncomfortable, but as we’ve seen, not all require urgent doctor’s care. How do you know when you should make an appointment with your doctor? As a rule, seek immediate treatment if, together with your sore throat, you have:
If your sore throat prevents you from eating or swallowing, contact Dr. Bailon as soon as possible for an urgent care appointment, especially if you suspect you’re experiencing anaphylactic shock from an allergic reaction. If you are in doubt whether your sore throat warrants a trip to the doctor, call the office, and we can advise you.
For sore throats, other urgent care needs, or routine health care appointments, call us at 206-741-0511 to schedule an appointment with Dr. Bailon or book online today. The sooner we can see you, the sooner you’ll feel better.
