What could be the reason for a sore throat with white streaks, red bumps, and an odd feeling in the tongue?

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I went through your query and understood your concern. There are a few possibilities based on the photographs and your clinical history (attachment removed to protect the patient's identity). 1) Inflammation of the mucosa (skin) lining your throat following a viral infection. 2) Laryngopharyngeal reflux is acid reflux causing persistent inflammation in the throat. 3) Allergic pharyngitis. Also, I have a few questions, 1. How is your voice? 2. Do you have any history of allergies? 3. Have you ever been diagnosed with GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease)? I hope this was helpful. Kindly follow up with the answers.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Keeping in mind the fact that a physician has examined you, I suggest you to start taking Gaviscon (Sodium Alginate, Sodium Bicarbonate, and Calcium Carbonate) suspension 10 ml every night after dinner before bed for 14 days. It provides symptomatic improvements. Also, I suggest you to follow the instructions mentioned below, 1) Follow lifestyle modifications such as avoiding late-night dinners and having an interval of 2 to 3 hours between dinner and bedtime. 2) Avoid reflexogenic foods like spicy, oily, fat-rich, and creamy foods, including dairy products, at night. 3) In addition, I suggest you to take a tablet of Domperidone (dopamine antagonist) 10 mg three times a day for two weeks (after food) in addition to the Omeprazole (antacid) that you are already taking. 4) Taking Gaviscon syrup 10 ml after food and a few minutes before bed has proven effective. You may use that initially for two weeks, which should control all your current symptoms. Gaviscon is available as an over-the-counter medication. When you consume it as the last thing before bed, it floats in your stomach, and instead of the acid returning, it will be this medicine that returns, thereby reverting all the changes in your esophagus right up to the throat. This can be used on and off in the future, in case you have a late-night dinner for various social reasons, etc. It is common for people with reflux to experience soreness, congestion, and inflammation of the throat (especially more in the mornings upon waking up). Gaviscon is very effective and gives good results quickly. May I also add that if you have the habit of lying down in the afternoons after lunch (some people take a siesta), it would be advisable to have the Gaviscon after lunch as well. Also, it is common to have a feverish feeling (without any recordable fever) due to throat inflammation. Kindly consult a specialist, talk with them and take the medications with their consent. I hope this has helped you. Take care.

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

I understand your concerns. However, based on the clinical photos (attachments removed to protect the patient's identity), they do not suggest anything ominous. Hope your throat symptoms resolve with Gaviscon and other lifestyle changes for GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease). The relevant examination would be palpation of your upper neck to look for enlarged lymph nodes. I would suggest waiting for at least two weeks with anti-reflux treatment and getting a clinical reassessment with your local GP if there are persistent symptoms. However, I would not be too worried about your throat findings currently. Best regards and speedy recovery.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Thank you for that clarification. I would attribute your throat findings to two contributory factors alone: 1) GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease). 2) Allergy as a probable contributor. The node at the back of your neck is the suboccipital lymph node, which is not relevant at all in your particular clinical scenario. You can ignore that; as you mentioned, it was present for a long time. Wishing you a speedy recovery.