Sore Throat

How We Treat Your Child’s Sore Throat

There is nothing worse for a parent than a sick child. A sore throat is sometimes only the beginning of an illness and dealing with it can be worrisome, even to the most experienced mom or dad. The best thing you can do for your child is to bring them in as soon as possible for a thorough examination, so that we can determine the cause of their achy throat, what illness they may have and get their treatment started so that they can get back to their full health once more.

Your child’s sore throat can be a symptom of something simple or something worse. All of us at Pediatric Partners want nothing more than to get them back to feeling healthy and happy, so call us today for an immediate appointment.

Causes of a Sore Throat

There are so many things that can cause your child to have throat pain and it can often be hard for you as a parent to pin down the exact cause. By bringing your child to our pediatrician, we can run tests to see what is causing it, as well as ask questions about the environment in your home, and how your child was doing before they became ill. Typical initial causes for this kind of childhood illness are viruses, bacteria and allergies.

Viruses like the common cold can cause the throat to swell and have pain. Typically, your child will have symptoms like a runny or congested nose, red eyes, flushed skin, coughing and a fever. There are viruses like influenza, the adenovirus and Epstein-Barr that can also cause throat pain, so getting your child checked is the first priority. Bacterial infections such as streptococcus or strep throat will have sudden symptoms that include a high fever, abdominal pain, nausea, headaches and vomiting.

Diagnosis and Treatment

There are two tests used to diagnose your child. Both of them will require that your doctor take swabs of the back and sides of their throat to gather samples.

The first test, which is the rapid test, is used to determine if it is a virus, and the results are quick.
The second test, a throat culture, takes 24 to 48 hours to fully develop.

Even if the first test is negative, the second test should still be done to isolate the cause of the illness, so that the doctor can narrow down the treatment plan.

Treating a sore throat will depend on the cause. Strep throat is generally treated with antibiotics, and after 24 hours of treatment, your child will no longer be contagious. All others can be treated with non-aspirin based pain medications or gargling solutions to reduce the pain. Most viral based sore throat cases clear up within a few days and your child can go back to school as long as there has been no fever for at least 24 hours.