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Toggle: English / SpanishStrep throat - Symptom
Alternative Names
Pharyngitis - streptococcal; Streptococcal pharyngitis
Symptoms:
Symptoms may be mild or severe. You usually start to feel sick about 2 to 5 days after you come in contact with the bacteria.
Symptoms usually begin suddenly, and can include:
- Fever that begins suddenly and is often highest on the second day
- Red throat, sometimes with white patches
- Sore throat
- Headache
- Nausea
- Chills
- General ill feeling
- Loss of appetite and abnormal taste
- Swollen lymph nodes in the neck
- Difficulty swallowing
Some strains of strep throat can lead to a scarlet fever-like rash. This rash is thought to be an allergic reaction to toxins made by the strep bacteria.
Signs and tests:
A rapid test can be done in most health care provider offices, but misses a few of the cases.
If the rapid strep test is negative and your health care provider still thinks you or your child may have strep, a throat swab can be tested (cultured) to see if strep grows from it. However, it will take one to two days for results to come back.
- Reviewed last on: 8/31/2011
- A.D.A.M. Editorial Team: David Zieve, MD, MHA, and David R. Eltz. Previously reviewed by Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Medical Director, MEDEX Northwest Division of Physician Assistant Studies, University of Washington, School of Medicine (2/12/2011).
References
Gerber MA, Baltimore RS, Eaton CB, et al. Prevention of rheumatic fever and diagnosis and treatment of acute Streptococcal pharyngitis: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association Rheumatic Fever, Endocarditis, and Kawasaki Disease Committee of the Council on Cardiovascular Disease in the Young, the Interdisciplinary Council on Functional Genomics and Translational Biology, and the Interdisciplinary Council on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research: endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Circulation. 2009 Mar 24;119(11):1541-51.
Chan TV. The Patient with Sore Throat. Med Clin North Am. 2010 Sep;94(5):923-43.
Shaikh N, Leonard E, Martin JM. Prevalence of streptococcal pharyngitis andstreptococcal carriage in children: a meta-analysis. Pediatrics. 2010 Sep;126(3):e557-64.
Del Mar C, Glasziou PP, Spinks A. Antibiotics for sore throat. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2006 Oct 18;(4):CD000023.
Altamimi S, Khalil A, Khalaiwi KA, Milner R, Pusic MV, Al Othman MA. Short versus standard duration antibiotic therapy for acute streptococcal pharyngitis in children. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2009, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD004872.
This article uses information by permission from Alan Greene, M.D., © Greene Ink, Inc.
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