I am having sore throat. How can I cure it?

Question

Hello doctor,

I have been having a sore throat for past one week. The pain is mild but constant, it feels as if there is something is stuck in the back of my throat or on my tongue, but nothing is there. There is redness around the area. I went to the doctor five days back and was prescribed a 10 days course of antibiotics (Amoxicillin). It did not make much of a difference. Is there anything else you would recommend me to do to clear this up. Those are the only symptoms. I am a 23-year-old male.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

You seem to have granular pharyngitis (attachment removed to protect patient identity). Your throat looks chronically infected. Do you have post nasal drip as well that means does phlegm drains down from your nose to throat? It is suggestive of sinusitis which can recurrently cause throat infection for a long time. You can start Clarithromycin 250 mg twice daily for five days but if possible get throat swab tested for culture and sensitivity and then start antibiotics based on the report. If it is difficult for you to get a throat swab done then you may directly start Clarithromycin as advised.

Answer 2

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Post nasal drip means you have sinusitis. You might be getting headache and nose block as well. Anyways you start Clarithromycin and take some decongestants like Phenylephrine for five days, mucolytics like N-acetylcysteine (600 mg twice daily) for three days, and anti-inflammatory like Paracetamol for three days. Once your infection subsides, if you get such episodes often, then get CT scan of paranasal sinuses done.