

The most common causes of sore throats are viruses. Sore throats can be caused by viruses or bacteria. Is a Sore Throat With a Cold Caused by Viruses or Bacteria?

Tonsillitis is a painful inflammation or infection of the tonsils, the tissue masses located at the back of the throat. With strep throat, the sore throat is often more severe and persists.

Strep throat, which is an infection due to streptococcus bacteria, is another cause of sore throats and tonsillitis. Other cold symptoms such as a runny nose and congestion may follow the sore throat. However, a sore throat from a cold often gets better or goes away after the first day or two.
#I keep getting a sore throat that comes and goes professional#
If you have specific healthcare concerns or issues you should consult with a qualified health care professional such as your own GP.What's the Difference Between a Cold, Strep Throat, and Tonsillitis?Ī sore throat is often the first sign of a cold. Medical information published on this website is of a general nature only and not intended to be a substitute for informed healthcare professional advice or clinical care. We believe in complementing rather than competing with the healthcare provided by General Practice and that the best medical care results from a coordinated and collaborative relationship built on trust between the after-hours doctor, the GP and the patient. This blog is brought to you by DoctorDoctor who provides access to on call home visiting doctors and after hours health care to residents of metropolitan Melbourne. Some cases of tonsillitis require antibiotic therapy, so be sure to consult your doctor if you experience a continual fever, severe pain on one side of the throat, or any difficulty in breathing. To reduce pain and fever paracetamol may be used, as well as saltwater gargles and lozenges.Īvoid alcohol, stay hydrated, and stick to soft and cool foods that will not irritate the throat further. It is typically caused by a virus, and in rarer cases, by bacteria. Symptoms include throat pain, fever, swollen lymph nodes, a stiff neck and red, painful tonsils with patches of white visible. Tonsillitis is inflammation of the glands at the back of your throat, known as the tonsils. Contact your doctor if your throat pain becomes severe, or does not begin to improve after a week. Your local chemist can assist with medicines to make your symptoms more manageable. To relieve the pain and symptoms stay hydrated, gargle with salt water, rest, and avoid foods that cause pain when swallowing. It is usually caused by a virus, but in a few cases, it can be caused by the Streptococcus pyogenes bacteria, which can exacerbate the symptoms. Symptoms include pain, a scratchy sensation in the throat, and tenderness when swallowing. Pharyngitis is the inflammation of the area at the back of the throat (the pharynx). See your doctor if your symptoms persist for longer than two weeks. Help your voice recover by drinking lots of water, gargling with an iodine-based gargle or with salt water, avoiding smoking, and by resting your voice as much as possible. It is usually caused by a viral infection, such as influenza or the common cold virus, or by straining your vocal chords by long periods of loud talking or yelling. Symptoms can also include coughing, headache, fever, and throat pain, especially when swallowing. Your vocal cords become swollen, and this leads to you sounding hoarse or losing your voice. Laryngitis refers to inflammation of the larynx, also known as the voice box. Throat infections can be divided into three different types, based on what area of the throat is affected. Basic hygiene such as covering your mouth and nose if you sneeze or a cough, as well as regularly washing your hands goes a long way to stop the virus being spread. The viruses can be spread via droplets from sneezes and coughing, or from hands that haven’t been washed and may have touched a sick person’s mouth or nose. It is far less common to have a bacterial throat infection. Viruses cause 90% of throat infections (Harvard Health, 2017). A sore throat is often a sign that a throat infection is present, but may also be caused by environmental factors such as breathing the dry air found in an aircraft, or from excessive yelling or screaming that often occurs when attending a noisy concert. Pain when talking or swallowing, the throat feeling swollen, dry, irritated, scratchy, or raw – these are some typical responses from people describing their symptoms. Having a sore throat can involve a variety of sensations.
