Angina is considered one of the most common diseases. She can overtake both a child and an adult. This disease is of an infectious-allergic origin, manifested in acute form. In the area of infection, lingual and nasopharyngeal areas, as well as the larynx, fall.
How much sore throat is treated? We will understand in this article.
Description of the disease
The disease is provoked by bacteria, viruses, fungi and other pathogenic microorganisms. Angina is a contagious disease, so the patient with this diagnosis should be isolated from healthy family members. In order to be cured, you need to understand how long therapy takes and what medications contribute to recovery.
So, how much sore throat is treated in adults and children?
Signs of a sore throat
The first symptoms appear 12 hours after the entry of harmful microbes into the body. Signs of the onset of the disease are:
1. Weakness.
2. Chills.
3. Drowsiness.
4. Soreness in the larynx.
After a day, the acute phase of the disease occurs, which is manifested by such symptoms:
1. Painful swallowing. This is the result of an inflammatory process on the tonsils. At the same time, breathing is difficult, since the opening of the nasopharynx narrows.
2. Sharp sore throat.
3. Elevated body temperature. This is a characteristic protective reaction of the body to an irritant in the form of pathogenic microorganisms.
4. Pain in the joints and muscles.
5. Severe headache. Appears as a result of poisoning the body by the vital products of microbes.
6. Enlarged cervical lymph nodes.
7. Reddish temples in the area of the tongue and tonsils.
8. Purulent formations on the tonsils.
As a rule, symptoms appear sharply and worsen almost immediately. Gray plaque on the tonsils indicates the process of cell death. How many tonsillitis is treated, which methods are most effective - this is of interest to many.
Course of the disease
The question of the duration of the sore throat can be answered by understanding the periods into which the disease is divided. In medical practice, it is customary to divide angina into three periods:
1. Prodromal. The beginning of the development of the disease, which is characterized by the active reproduction of harmful bacteria on the mucous membrane of the throat. The duration of this period starts from twelve hours and can reach up to three days. For this period, weakness and apathy are characteristic. Chills are sometimes possible, but with good immunity, the disease may not have pronounced symptoms.
2. The acute phase. The manifestation of symptoms becomes more pronounced and acute. During this period, the temperature rises, the throat hurts quite badly, and also weakness increases due to intoxication of the body.
3. The final stage. Inflammation gradually subsides and recovery begins. This period can last up to seven days. And how much is tonsillitis treated? It should be borne in mind that the total duration of the disease directly depends on the timeliness of the measures taken and the state of the patient's immunity.
Sore throat in adulthood
The duration of a sore throat largely depends on its type. Medicine provides the following classification of forms of this disease:
1. Catarrhal sore throat. It is characterized by redness of the mucous membranes in the oral cavity. Tonsils tend to increase in size. This type of sore throat can last up to five days. This is the mildest and most gentle form of the disease for the body. Failure to comply with all the requirements of a specialist, however, can lead to the fact that angina will turn into a more severe form - purulent. How much purulent tonsillitis is treated, we will consider later.
2. Follicular tonsillitis. Its duration is up to seven days.
3. Lacunar form of tonsillitis. The course of this species is characterized as severe. Its duration is up to a week.
4. Herpetic tonsillitis. As the name implies, this type of disease is provoked by the herpes virus. In this case, antiviral therapy should be started as soon as possible. This will help reduce the duration of the disease to five days.
5. Phlegmonous and ulcerative necrotic tonsillitis. These are the most severe forms of the disease, accompanied by complications. Determining the duration of a sore throat of this type is quite difficult, since it depends on the individual characteristics of the body.
What should be considered?
How many days an angina is treated in adults, not everyone knows. It should be borne in mind that even after the disappearance of symptoms, you should continue to take medications for up to 10 days. With angina, antibiotics, immunomodulating drugs and antiviral drugs are always prescribed. In addition, vitamin complexes are usually prescribed.
As part of complex therapy in the treatment of tonsillitis, various sprays are also used, rinsing with herbal and antiseptic infusions. In addition, it is recommended to drink as much fluid as possible, as this helps to eliminate toxins and avoids exhaustion. The patient is also recommended to strictly observe bed rest, as otherwise there is a high risk of complications.
How many days is angina treated in children
The most common tonsillitis in children aged three to ten years. This is due to the fact that the children's body as a whole and the immune system in particular are not yet fully formed at this age and are easily susceptible to harmful bacteria and viruses. In childhood, the course of the disease is more severe than in adults. Body temperature can rise up to 40 degrees, a plaque appears on the tongue and tonsils, and the painful sensations in the throat are most intense.
When visiting a doctor, parents often ask how much angina is treated in a child. It should be borne in mind that in childhood, the catarrhal form of angina can quickly transform into follicular or lacunar. This explains the very high temperature due to intoxication. Lacunar angina is considered the most severe form of the disease for the child. Pronounced symptoms can occur up to a week. For the catarrhal form, only redness of the throat is characteristic. Moreover, if you follow all the doctor’s prescriptions, the disease recedes after three days. How many days is acute sore throat treated?
Chronic Risk
There is a risk of it becoming chronic tonsillitis, which tends to make itself felt every time the immune system is in a weakened state. To avoid such a complication, it is necessary to eliminate the root cause of the disease. This can be done by prolonged therapy with vitamin preparations and strengthening immunity. Quite often, the root cause of tonsillitis in children can be caries or kidney disease. After the rehabilitation period, doctors recommend walking and tempering more.
How much purulent tonsillitis is treated in adults - this will be discussed later.
Purulent tonsillitis
This type of disease is characterized by the appearance of pustules on the tonsils. The duration of treatment depends on the symptoms that appear, and the right therapeutic tactics. The incubation period with this form of angina can last up to five days. Moreover, it most often passes latently. How much antibiotics are treated for angina, it is important to determine in advance.
Over the next week, symptoms are most pronounced. Practical medicine distinguishes two main stages:
1. Acute. It is characterized by general weakness, fever up to forty degrees, intoxication, severe soreness in the throat. Purulent sores form on the tongue and tonsils. The acute stage of sore throat lasts up to five days and ends at the moment when the abscesses erupt.
2. The recovery stage. It lasts from four to seven days. It is characterized by the gradual healing of pustular wounds, while erosion is formed in their place. Inflammation subsides, and the patient's general well-being returns to normal.
How acute and prolonged a sore throat will be depends on the state of health of the patient, his protective system of the body and the execution of doctor's prescriptions.
Diseases similar to a sore throat
Purulent sore throat is manifested by symptoms similar to other diseases, which complicates the differential diagnosis. However, such diseases differ in the duration of the course. Among them, the most common:
1. Infectious form of mononucleosis. In acute form, this disease can remain for up to three weeks, and a plaque on the tonsils remains for several days after the symptoms disappear.
2. Pharyngomycosis. The duration of the disease is several weeks, and in exceptional cases, several months. In this case, the key point is to make the correct diagnosis. Pharyngomycosis cannot be treated with antibiotics, as this can lead to a deterioration in the patient's condition. The fact is that this disease is provoked by infectious fungi, the suppression of which by antibiotics stimulates their even greater reproduction.
3. Herpangina. One of the signs of this disease is a rash, which is often confused with pustules. Herpangin lasts up to a week and does not require the use of drugs from the category of antibiotics. Anti-inflammatory and antiviral therapy is carried out.
It is also important to differentiate angina from diphtheria and measles, as they are life-threatening to the patient. Thus, the duration of treatment of angina depends on the form of the disease. Only purulent sore throat requires antibiotic treatment.
Treatment of chronic tonsillitis
Chronic tonsillitis is a bacterial tonsillitis that recurs periodically. In the vast majority of cases, the appearance of tonsillitis in a chronic form is caused by an infection of the streptococcal type.
The following symptoms indicate chronic inflammation of the tonsils:
1. Angina, appearing every few months.
2. Antibodies to streptococcal infections (ASLO titer) are detected in the blood serum.
3. Bacteriological culture of the throat smear is positive for streptococci.
4. Rheumatism, manifested in a decrease in the performance of the kidneys, heart and joints.
In chronic tonsillitis, antibiotic therapy is performed, and drugs are prescribed in an increased dosage and a longer course than usual.
Conclusion
Treatment is supplemented with local antiseptic drugs intended for rinsing, injecting or resorbing. Viral tonsillitis requires the appointment of antiviral drugs, the duration of treatment of which is up to seven days. Antibiotics are taken with a bacterial form of the disease for up to two weeks.