How is a Strep Throat Treated?

The first goal of the treatment for strep throat is the prevention of the acute rheumatic fever. However, the benefits also include preventing suppurative complications, alleviation of strep throat symptoms, limiting the household spread, and also reducing the duration of the disease. 

Consult with your doctor

The first step in the treatment of strep throat infection is to visit your doctor or a medical health care provider. Your doctor will diagnose you and try to find how serious your problem is. Some people believe that taking antibiotics can solve their strep throat problem easily. However, this is a foolish idea. In the end, it can be dangerous for you.

Follow the prescription

After diagnosing you, if you doctor provides you a prescription, then start following it. Go to the drug store and then follow it without missing any doses of the drug. A course of antibiotics has usually been used to get rid of strep throat infection and prevent any further complications. Avoid alcohol intake totally after starting the antibiotic course.

Antibiotics

The most generally used antibiotics to treat the strep throat infection are from the penicillin group of antibiotics. They are available as liquid suspensions, oral tablets, or capsules form. The benefit of penicillin use in the management of the strep throat infection was already discovered in the late 1940s as well as the early 1950s, and it continued the treatment of choice to this modern day.

The World Health Organization (WHO), the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), and the AAFP Foundation (American Academy of Family Physicians) recommend either a 10-day schedule of oral treatment such as penicillin or a single IM or intramuscular injection such as benzathine penicillin G as a first-line approach to strep throat treatment.

If this therapy is started within the initial 48 hours of the illness, a quick resolution of fever happens, plus the spread of the Streptococcus pyogenic bacteria is contained.

Adjunctive therapy by using anti-inflammatory drugs like diclofenac and ibuprofen, or any analgesic agents like paracetamol can help in overcoming severe symptoms as well as control high fever. However, it should be indicated that Aspirin should not be applied to children to prevent a rare, but probably fatal Reye’s syndrome.

Make sure that you will discuss with your doctor if you have drug allergies to any medications. Those who have an allergy to penicillin, the 1st generation oral cephalosporins drugs are adequate alternatives for them. The penicillin-allergic persons may be treated with clarithromycin, erythromycin, or azithromycin. But, approximately 1/3 of the patients do not finish treatment with the erythromycin as a result of drug-induced adverse reactions. Moreover, widespread use of these antimicrobial drugs can lead to the community-wide development of erythromycin-resistant strep throat or beta-hemolytic group A streptococcus.

Self-care

• Children with the strep throat do not need to go to school or outside until they have been on the prescribed antibiotics for minimum 24 hours.
• Wash your hands regularly. Always keep a bottle of hand sanitizer near to your bed. Take a short shower or bath before you going to sleep.
• Take rest as much as you can. Your body requires the adequate energy to battle against the infection. You will recover better much quicker if it is possible for you to scale back your activities.
• Anyone who is taking antibiotics must need to complete the prescription even if all sign and symptoms are gone.
• Cover your mouth properly when you are coughing or sneezing, and also don’t share your eating and drinking equipment with others.