strep

I was taught that being an asymptomatic carrier of strep in the throat was not associated with either illness or risk of complications. That’s not always true. The schedule said ‘strep throat x 5 weeks and diarrhea.’  Handing me the encounter form, my nurse warned me: ‘Mom’s not a happy camper.’

Clinicians like making the diagnosis of strep (streptococcal) throat (and patients hate being told they have a viral sore throat) for the same reasons: a belief in the ability of antibiotics to shorten the illness and prevent serious complications That’s what we doctors were taught, and that’s what we’ve taught our patients. How justified is this belief?  Well, there are problems.