Soothing a Sore Throat

Friday, March 03, 2006

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Got a sore throat? It's not uncommon this time of year. Most sore throats are caused by a viral infection and accompany a cold or the flu. The sore throat caused by a virus usually goes away on its own after about a week.

Occasionally, a sore throat is caused by a bacterial infection — usually strep (streptococcal). Strep throat may cause a painful throat, swollen lymph glands, fever or headaches, but usually doesn't cause the cough, congestion or hoarseness of viral infections. Strep throat requires antibiotics. Your doctor can determine if you have a viral or a bacterial infection by swabbing the back of your throat and culturing the cells for bacteria.

The March issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter offers self-care tips to ease sore throat:

• Get plenty of rest.
• Double fluid intake.
• Gargle, but don't swallow, a glass of warm water mixed with ½ teaspoon salt.
• Use throat sprays or lozenges.
• Eat foods that are gentle on your throat, such as ice cream, sorbet or soup.
• Take pain relievers, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others).
• Wear a face mask to keep the air that you breathe moist.

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About Mayo Clinic

Mayo Clinic is the first and largest integrated, not-for-profit group practice in the world. Doctors from every medical specialty work together to care for patients, joined by common systems and a philosophy of "the needs of the patient come first." More than 3,300 physicians, scientists and researchers and 46,000 allied health staff work at Mayo Clinic, which has sites in Rochester, Minn., Jacksonville, Fla., and Scottsdale/Phoenix, Ariz. Collectively, the three locations treat more than half a million people each year. To obtain the latest news releases from Mayo Clinic, go to www.mayoclinic.org/news. For information about research and education visit www.mayo.edu. MayoClinic.com is available as a resource for your health stories.