What is a sore throat?

Everyone has undoubtedly had a sore throat before. What exactly is it and why was it more dangerous in the past than it is now?

With a throat infection, the pharynx and tonsils are inflamed. You will not only have pain in the throat, but also when swallowing. The glands in the neck may also be painfully swollen and you may have a high fever. The cause is almost always a virus, which means that antibiotics are neither necessary nor useful. A throat infection usually heals on its own after 3 to 4 days. A painkiller can relieve the symptoms somewhat and drinking many small sips of water also helps.

In exceptional cases, a streptococcus is responsible for the infection. In the past, this caused serious conditions such as rheumatic fever, rheumatic heart disease and kidney inflammation. Due to better socio-economic conditions, this rarely happens. A visit to the doctor is only necessary if the fever and symptoms persist for more than 4 days.

Author: Prof. Dr. Dirk Devroey - Latest update: 0000-00-00 - Copyright: Clinifacts 2024