What causes a sore throat?

Most sore throats go away on their own, but you should see your doctor if you have a sore throat that is severe, lasts longer than a week, accompanied by joint pain, causes an earache or a fever higher than 101 F. Get medical advice straight away if you have difficulty swallowing, trouble breathing, difficulty opening your mouth, blood in your saliva or phlegm, or swelling in your neck or face.

Most sore throats are the result of common viruses and resolve on their own within 3 to 10 days. Sore throats caused by a bacterial infection or allergies may last longer. See your doctor if your sore throat lasts longer than two weeks.

Some people infected with the virus have no symptoms, but symptomatic patients may have fever, body ache, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, confusion, chills, headache, sore throat, loss of appetite, and loss of smell. Since some symptoms overlap with those for COVID-19, it is sometimes impossible to tell if a person has COVID-19 or just a sore throat without further evaluation by a doctor. You may need to isolate for 10 days or more after your symptoms start to avoid the risk of spreading COVID-19.

Cough drops or lozenges can also help with sore throat pain - as can over-the-counter pain relievers, such as ibuprofen, tylenol, or naproxen. Chicken soup or broth, warm tea with honey, popsicles, ice cubes and ice water can soothe a sore throat quickly. Some people find gargling with saltwater can bring relief. Get plenty of rest and your sore throat should get better on its own.

Symptoms of a sore throat usually include pain or irritation in your throat that's often worse when you swallow. Your throat may feel scratchy and you may also have a hoarse voice. A sore throat may be accompanied by sniffles, drainage down the back of your throat, a cough and feeling weak and feverish.

In most cases, antibiotics won't help a sore throat, but over-the-counter medications and home remedies such as saltwater gargles or warm tea with honey can help a sore throat. See your doctor if you have white spots or pus in the back of your throat, high fevers, swollen or painful glands in your neck, or your symptoms last longer than two weeks. Only bacterial infections, like strep throat or a peritonsillar abscess, will be helped by antibiotics.

The signs and symptoms of strep throat are very similar to an ordinary sore throat, but in general strep throat has white patches on the tonsils or pus in the back of the throat. Strep throat usually doesn’t cause a cough. If you have swollen, painful lymph nodes in the neck and a fever, that could suggest strep throat.

A popular sore throat remedy is to drink some apple cider vinegar. While this option might not taste the best, consuming apple cider vinegar diluted in water might relieve some mild cold symptoms. Many people swear but apple cider vinegar for cold symptoms but there isn’t definitive scientific evidence to prove it really helps.

Home strep tests come with a sterile cotton swab, which you'll gently brush against the back of your throat for a second or two. These tests typically come with two substances called reagents. You'll mix these together and add the cotton swab to get your results.

You can have inflammation of one side of the throat or one tonsil. The tonsils are located at the back of the throat on each side, and a virus or bacteria usually causes the infection and inflammation. An infection in just one tonsil, or just one side of the throat, can cause pain on just one side. It may also cause a fever, trouble swallowing, and swollen lymph nodes in one side of the neck. If your symptoms get worse or you develop more symptoms then arrange an appointment with your doctor immediately.