How can strep throat be treated? - By: Groshan Fabiola

Generally sore throat is treated with antibiotics if it is produced by bacteria. Then we are talking about a strep throat condition. From the numerous antibiotic drugs which exist nowadays, oral penicillin V is the most used antibiotic for treating strep throat. This type of antibiotic has been used since 50 years ago for treating strep throat caused by streptococcus A and is still effective as resistance to this drug did not install yet.

Doctors prescribe generally oral penicillin which has to be taken two to three times a day for 10 days. Other doctors prefer to prescribe ampicillin or amoxicillin instead of penicillin V as it has been proven that they are more effective than penicillin V and do not request such a long period of treatment. The disadvantage is that they can give some unpleasant side effects like: antibiotic-related rash or diarrhea.

Some patients are allergic to penicillin and need a different treatment. For them erythromycins (macrolides) are most suitable. Nowadays new drugs have been invented from the class of macrolides and they can be used successfully in treating strep throat. The disadvantage is that the newer they are the more expensive they get.

The treatment is recommended to be followed for ten days but studies have proven that a shorter period of treatment can kill the streptococci from the throat too. The disadvantage is that not all the A group of streptococci respond to a shorter course of therapy, and until the doctor receives the results of the throat analyze, he can not be certain that a short course of therapy will be effective 100%.

In treating the children who have strep throat doctors prefer to use a single shot of long-acting penicillin as children usually refuse to follow all the ten days treatment. The problem with this shot is that is gives pain for about 24 hours and scientists did not find any solution to this. The god thing is that this one shot assures a complete treatment of the strep throat. Some children might be allergic to penicillin and this is why the doctor will insist to monitorize the child after the shot for a certain period of time.

So, in treating the strep throat the doctor will prescribe penicillin or any other new antibiotic which is effective on streptococcus group A. There are two antibiotics which must never be used in attempting to treat strep throat as they are not effective on streptococcus group A: tetracyclines and sulfonamides.

After the treatment has been instituted the patient will feel better in about 48 to 72 hours. The children will be able to go to school in about 48 hours but with the condition that their fever is not present any more.

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