Nationally, respiratory illness is causing a moderate number of people to seek health care, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Respiratory illnesses range from the common cold to COVID-19, RSV and the flu.
All of these viral illnesses can cause a sore throat. While there haven’t been any outbreaks related to strep throat during the 2024 respiratory season reported to the Springfield-Greene County Health Department, December is the start of the “high” season for strep throat, according to the CDC.
Here’s what to know about strep throat, how to tell if you have it and ways to treat it.
What is strep throat?
Strep throat is one of the infections caused by group A Streptococcus, group A strep, disease. It can be treated with antibiotics.
Other infections from group A strep include mild ones like impetigo and scarlet fever, as well as more serious infections like cellulitis, necrotizing fasciitis or streptococcal toxic shock syndrome.
Additionally, a group A strep infection can trigger certain inflammatory diseases such as rheumatic fever, which affects the heart, and post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis, which affects the kidneys.
How does strep throat spread?
Group A strep is very contagious, according to the CDC, and some people may not even realize they are infected because they don’t feel sick or have symptoms.
Most often, group A strep is passed through respiratory droplets since the bacteria often lives in the nose and mouth. That means that people who are infected can spread the bacteria by talking, coughing or sneezing.
It takes about two to five days after exposure to become ill with strep throat, according to the CDC.
How can I prevent strep throat?
There are no vaccines to prevent strep throat and people can contract group A strep bacteria more than once.
When it comes to preventing strep throat, practice the same habits that keep you healthy during respiratory illness season, according to the CDC:
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Cover coughs and sneezes;
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Wash glasses, utensils and plates after someone sick uses them;
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How common is strep throat?
If you have a sore throat, don’t panic. According to the CDC, most sore throats are caused by viruses: Only about 1 in 10 adults and 3 in 10 children with a sore throat have strep throat.
What are symptoms of strep throat?
The best way to know what you have is to visit your doctor, who will swab your tonsils and test for the bacteria.
However, there are some symptoms that can help you tell if you’re dealing with strep rather than a virus:
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Sore throat that started very quickly and may look red;
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Swollen lymph nodes in the front of the neck;
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Tiny, red spots on the roof of the mouth;
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White patches or streaks of pus on the tonsils.
This graphic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows what a healthy throat looks like.
This graphic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows what symptoms of strep throat may look like.
Less common symptoms include headache, nausea or vomiting, rash and stomach pain.
How is strep throat treated?
Since strep throat is a bacterial infection, health care providers treat it with antibiotics. Call a health care provider if you or your child is not feeling better after taking antibiotics for 48 hours.
Since group A strep is contagious, people should stay home from work, school or daycare until they no longer have a fever and have been on antibiotics for at least 12 to 24 hours, according to the CDC.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: What does strep throat look like? Symptoms, causes and treatment
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