Other Causes Of A Sore Throat
There are many causes of a sore throat, ranging from bacterial infections, flu, and causes as serious as throat cancer. If you are uncertain about the cause of your sore throat, or the symptoms do not ease after a couple of weeks, it is worth seeking the advice of a doctor.
If the pain and irritation in your throat is severe and accompanied by difficulty in breathing or swallowing, seek medical attention immediately. This is because in rare circumstances, allergies can give rise to swelling in the back of the throat to the extent that it becomes a medical emergency.
Risks Of A Thyroid Scan
Theres a small but safe amount of radiation contained in the radionuclide used in any thyroid scan. Your exposure to radiation will be minimal and within the acceptable ranges for diagnostic exams. There are no known long-term complications of having a nuclear medicine procedure.
Allergic reactions to the radionuclide material are extremely rare. The effects are mild when they occur. You may experience mild pain and redness at the injection site for a short time if you receive an injection of the radionuclide.
Even though the radiation exposure is minimal and short term, thyroid scans arent recommended for pregnant or breastfeeding women. Your doctor may recommend that you avoid becoming pregnant or fathering a child for six months after the test if youve had a metastatic scan.
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For 2nd Day In A Row Southern Illinois Health Care Region Has Zero Available Icu Beds Amid Covid Surge
“If you have sniffles or signs of a cold, there is a good possibility you could have COVID, right” Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said in Facebook Live last month.
“Our guidance has not changed that if you are sick or even a little bit sick, you need to stay home and you need to get a COVID test before we can answer that question,” she added.
Arwady noted that such precautions are especially important for people heading to coronavirus vaccination sites.
“I don’t want you coming to a COVID vaccination site if there’s even a chance in your mind that you have COVID right now,” she said.
However, for people with “persistent allergies,” things can be different.
“Let me clarify though that if, say you have persistent allergies, right? Spring is springing, and if you are someone who has sniffles or you have something that’s chronic, you’ve been checked, it’s not COVID, you can get a vaccine in that setting,” Arwady said. “But if this is new, I do not want you and we definitely do not do COVID tests at the vaccination site. We want anybody who has any concerns for COVID – we do symptom screening, etc. and we have all the safety things in place – but if you have any concerns for possibly having COVID, we want you to go into a COVID testing site nowhere near the vaccination site.”
Allergies can occasionally be met with a loss of taste or smell.
The CDC reports that pollen exposure can trigger allergic reactions, such as symptoms of hay fever.
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Know Your Paths To Care
Were here to help you get better quickly, with tools and information for self-care and convenient options for visits or advice when you need it. Easy ways to get help for your cold or allergy symptoms include:
- Consulting Nurse Service: Call a nurse, who will assess your symptoms and recommend treatments or other next steps. Available 24/7.
- Online visit: Complete a questionnaire about your symptoms. A clinician will provide a diagnosis, treatment plan and, if needed, a prescription without a trip to your doctors office.
- CareClinic by Kaiser Permanente at Bartell Drugs:Walk in for care at 15 Puget Sound Bartell Drugs locations. Open 7 days a week with evening and weekend hours.
You Dont Have Any Other Coronavirus Symptoms
Since there are so many things that can cause a sore throat, it can be a challenge to know if yours is COVID-related. Fortunately, you can rest assured that a sore throat alone is not actually that common a coronavirus symptom. A joint report from the World Health Organization and Chinese researchers found that only 13.9 percent of COVID patients experience a sore throat.
According to Leann Poston, MD, a licensed physician and medical advisor for Invigor Medical, if your sore throat is COVID, youre likely to experience more common symptoms such as fever, dry cough, fatigue, sputum production, and shortness of breath. However, since there is no way to fully differentiate, you should get a COVID test to make absolutely sure your sore throat is not the virus. And for more on the future of the pandemic, Dr. Fauci Just Said These 3 Things Are About to Make COVID Worse.
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When To See A Doctor
If you wake up with a sore throat frequently or it lasts more than a week, you should let your doctor know. They may do some tests or do a throat swab to find out whatâs causing it. Depending on your diagnosis, the doctor will decide a treatment plan.
If your sore throat makes it difficult to breathe or swallow or you feel a lump in your throat, get it checked out as soon as possible. If you have a viral or bacterial infection along with a fever higher than 101 F, see your doctor about it. You can take over-the-counter pain medications to ease the fever and help you feel better.
If your sore throat is a symptom of sleep apnea, besides sleep study tests, the doctor may refer you to an ear, nose, and throat specialist to rule out any structural blocks that may be causing your sleep issues.
When To Contact Your Health Care Provider
If your symptoms dont improve, or you feel worse, you should contact your health care provider. The American Academy of Otolaryngology2 recommends alerting your doctor if you have any of the following symptoms:
- Difficulty breathing, swallowing, or opening your mouth
- Swelling of the neck or face
- Earache
- A fever of 101°F or higher
- Lumps in the throat or neck
If you have allergies that lead to a sore throat, treating them with OTC medication or natural remedies may provide you with relief from pain and discomfort. But if your symptoms worsen, contact your health care provider to rule out a more serious health concern.
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Are There Home Remedies For A Sore Throat
As your sore throat is likely to be caused by dryness from breathing or irritation from post-nasal drip, it is important to drink plenty of water. This will keep the back of your throat moist, but will also help to thin the mucus building up at the back of your throat, reducing irritation. If your throat is feeling itchy, then drinking plenty of water will also ease the symptom.
If you are not fond of the taste of plain water, then drinking a concoction of warm water and honey has been used for years to ease the symptoms of a sore throat. Aside from the soothing effect this drink has, it has also been shown to be an effective wound healer, so may speed up recovery from the symptom.
Gargling salt water is another age-old remedy for sore throats. The antiseptic properties of salt should also prevent an infection from setting in.
Of course, as the old saying goes, prevention is better than cure, so trying to keep out of the way of pollen is probably the most effective remedy. Although it may be impossible to avoid pollen altogether, minimising your exposure to it by avoiding areas of freshly cut grass, for example, are measures worth employing.
How Is Allergic Esophagitis Treated
Allergic esophagitis may not go away completely. Treatment may help relieve your symptoms.
- Steroid medicine may help decrease swelling in your esophagus. You will swallow the medicine so it coats your esophagus.
- Stomach acid medicine helps keep heartburn symptoms under control.
- Dilatation is a procedure used when the esophagus narrows from swelling. An endoscope is placed into your mouth and down your throat. Tools on the endoscope press against the tissues to widen your esophagus. Dilatation can improve your symptoms but will not stop allergic esophagitis from happening.
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When Its A Sore Throat
When its a sore throat caused by a cold virus, you will often have other cold symptoms that may include:
- Runny nose.
- Red or watery eyes.
- Sneezing.
You do not have a cough with strep. If youre coughing, that typically means no strep, says Daniel Allan, MD. Also, when you look in the throat of a person with a sore throat caused by a cold virus, you typically do not see pus or exudate in the back of the throat.
Colds usually take several days to develop and typically go away on their own within five to seven days, Dr. Allan says.
There is no cure for a sore throat caused by a cold virus, but you can do things to make yourself feel more comfortable: Drinking warm liquids, gargling with warm salt water, sucking on ice chips, or taking an over-the-counter medicine can provide relief for your symptoms.
You also can speed your recovery by getting enough rest, eating a healthy diet and drinking plenty of fluids.
When To Seek Emergency Care
If you or someone else is showing any of these signs, seek emergency medical care immediately:
- Trouble breathing
- Inability to wake or stay awake
- Pale, gray, or blue-colored skin, lips, or nail beds, depending on skin tone
This list is not exhaustive. If you are concerned, seek medical care right away.
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How Allergies Can Cause A Sore Throat
The glands in your nose and throat make about one to two quarts of mucus every day, reports the American Academy of OtolaryngologyHead and Neck Surgery Foundation. This mucus has many important functions, such as keeping your nose clean and moistening the air you breathe, and you usually swallow it without realizing. Other times, people may notice mucus dripping down the back of their nose or pooling in their throat. This unpleasant sensation is known as postnasal drip, and it can be caused by allergies.
If you have postnasal drip, the trickle of mucus can irritate your throat and cause soreness and other symptoms, such as feeling a lump in the throat or swallowing more frequently. It may also make you feel the need to clear your throat more often.
Is Your Sore Throat Caused By Cold Or Allergies
But, how to tell whether your sore throat is caused by allergies or just cold? The best way is to pay attention to the duration. How long does it last? A common cold will get pretty bad for a day or so, but they will often go away within a few days at the most, the common cold lasts for ten days. The flu lasts for about the same period of time, and is accompanied by muscle aches and fatigue among other symptoms. But allergies are persistent. They can go on for weeks or even months. Seasonal allergies often occur during the spring, and tend to come around every year, no matter what you do to try to avoid them.
You can also tell the difference between a cold and allergies by the mucus. Colds cause mucus that is yellowish, while allergies lead to a thin and clear mucus discharge. You might also notice a difference in symptoms: the cold tends to cause coughing and congestion, while allergies can include itchy eyes and a sore throat.
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How Can You Tell If Your Sore Throat Is From Allergies
Sore throat, especially during the winter months, can also signal a cold or a virus, making it hard to tell what you’re dealing with. It can be difficult to differentiate between a cold and allergies, but the best way to differentiate between the two would be length of symptoms and past history of allergies, Dr. Li says.
“Both allergies and the seasonal cold can cause runny nose, stuffy nose, sneezing, watery eyes and cough,” he says. “However, cold symptoms typically last only a few days while allergy symptoms will often last several weeks to months.”
Allergy symptoms also typically flare up during the spring, summer and fall seasons, while colds usually come during the winter times, Dr. Li says. Allergy symptoms are also more responsive to oral antihistamine and nasal steroids while cold symptoms typically are more resistant to these types of treatments. Lastly, colds or viruses that can cause sore throat will usually will present with more fevers and body aches than allergies will.
Certain symptoms, such as runny nose or itchy, watery eyes, are more common with allergies than a cold, Dr. Simpson adds. If you’re also experiencing aches and pains or a fever, you most likely have a cold or virus. Thick yellow mucus is often more typical of a cold or virus.
How Can I Treat My Sore Throat And Get Rid Of A Sore Throat Quickly
First, if you have identified the underlying reason of the throat soreness consider treating that cause. For instance, if your sore/itchy throat is related to allergies, successfully managing your allergies well will both help reduce your allergy symptoms and help your throat feel better.
Although treating your sore throat will depend on the cause, there are a couple ways to treat sore throat pain and discomfort:
- Drink plenty of water, preferably warm
- Use a throat lozenge or cough drop to keep your throat moist
- Use a humidifier
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How You Can Tell The Difference Between Cold And Seasonal Allergy Symptoms
With both allergies and colds, its typical to have congestion or a runny nose, and to sneeze often. You may also feel tired and drowsy. But there are several other symptoms that dont often overlap between allergies and a cold. Here are some of the telltale differences between cold symptoms and allergy symptoms.
What To Do If You Think Your Child Has Strep Throat
If you notice these symptoms and think your child has strep throat, because, once again, theres no need to rush to an emergency room.
You may not need to schedule a doctors visit with your childs pediatrician, either.
Strep throat is painful, and your child may have to wait hours or even days to see a primary care physician or pediatrician.
Instead, an urgent care facility is the perfect place to turn. Places like GoHealth Urgent Care frequently test and treat strep throat, especially in young children. We can also refer an ear, nose and throat specialist is something to think about, should the problem persist.
When you visit our urgent care center, there is no need to schedule an appointment and your wait time will be short
Another tip to remember is this: strep throat is very contagious, so make sure your child stays home from school or other responsibilities after a strep diagnosis. After 24 hours of antibiotics, the infection will no longer be contagious.
Feel free to book a hassle-free appointment below using the location widget! And, as always, GoHealth Urgent Care is a walk-in clinic that does not require an appointment to see a doctor!
GoHealth Urgent Care partners with these regional healthcare providers:
- Northwell Health-GoHealth Urgent Care in New York
- Dignity Health-GoHealth Urgent Care in San Francisco
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Excess Mucus In Throat Causes
Throat mucus, or phlegm, can be a result of allergies or a sore throat, but there are numerous reasons for throat mucus, revealing what is going on inside your body. Even when you are healthy, your body is constantly producing mucus. Most of the time, this mucus drips down the back of your throat without you noticing. But during times of illness, that mucus can clog your throat.Your body doesnt necessarily produce more mucus when youre sick, but the consistency of the mucus changes so you begin to notice it. There are many factors that can change the consistency of mucus, like allergies or milk consumption for some people.
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Is My Sore Throat Covid Or Allergies
Only sore throat is a common cold symptom. It may be due to the flu or any other environmental changes.
If you have a sore throat with a complaint of fever, breathing difficulty, dry cough, or body ache, it may indicate you are infected with covid 19.
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How To Treat The Sore Throat Caused By Allergies
Fortunately, sore throat allergies can be treated very well, through either over-the-counter remedies or home-based cures. But always remember that the best way to avoid sore throat allergies is to prevent allergies altogether.
1. Prevent Allergies
Start by avoiding the allergens if you can. For instance, if you wind up with sore throat allergies after being around a smoker, make sure to avoid cigarette smoke. Not sure what you are allergic to? You can see your doctor to get an allergen test and figure out what makes your body react. Once you know what you are allergic to, you might be able to get a regimen of shots that will keep you from having symptoms from those irritants.
2. Take Medications
Sometimes you cant prevent allergies. In that case, turn to the great over-the-counter medications that are designed to treat all the symptoms, including sore throat. Allergies are often relieved by antihistamines such as Zyrtec and Claritin, as well as some others that treat only very specific symptoms, like Benadryl.
3. Try Home Remedies
Though these home remedies below might not get rid of the problem, they do decrease the symptoms and make allergies more tolerable.
