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Angina is one of the most common childhood diseases. Common symptoms include a sore throat, fever, enlarged lymph nodes and swollen tonsils. Angina in children is usually caused by a bacterial infection with streptococcus. Treatment of angina in the youngest is extremely important because the condition can lead to complications.
What causes angina in children?
Angina in children is actually an inflammation of the tonsils and pharynx caused by streptococci. Here it is necessary to clearly distinguish this disease from the very popular viral pharyngitis. Symptoms typical of an infection of the throat mucosa do not always mean that antibiotic therapy will be required. Treatment of viral infections, which are usually milder than bacterial, is symptomatic. Therefore, it is very important to correctly diagnose your doctor and avoid unnecessary administration of antibiotics.
Apart from viruses such as adenoviruses, rhinoviruses and coronaviruses, yeasts can also cause diseases of the throat structures. We are then dealing with fungal pharyngitis and tonsillitis.
Angina in children – contagiousness and duration
Until you become infected streptococcal angina in children, it often occurs as a result of contact with a sick person. The disease is transmitted by airborne droplets and is quite easily infected in schools and kindergartens. In case of weakening of the organism, angina may occur in the unknowing carrier of the germs as a result of auto-infection. Most often, angina develops in children and adolescents aged 3 to 14 years.
If your child has started antibiotic treatment, they will not be contagious after one day. If this therapy is not started, there is a risk of transmission of infection for up to 7 days after the symptoms have disappeared. The duration of the angina in a child is usually up to a week. The more severe symptoms of the disease should disappear after two or three days after the initiation of treatment.
Common and unusual symptoms of angina in children
Children sick with bacterial angina will complain of a sore throat that gets worse when swallowing. There is also almost always a clear swelling and redness of the tonsils, which may be accompanied by a whitish coating. High fever (around 39 degrees C), weakness and enlargement of the lymph nodes are also typical. The lack of coughing is also characteristic.
In children under the age of 7, angina may experience vomiting and abdominal pain. Sometimes there is also a headache, lack of appetite and a general feeling of discomfort. A very puffed up and swollen throat can cause breathing problems.
Angina in children – treatment and home remedies
Treatment of bacterial angina in children involves administering an antibiotic as prescribed by your doctor. The standard is penicillin. Choosing a drug helps to prevent dangerous disease complications. You should also use anti-inflammatory, antipyretic and analgesic drugs. In the case of the youngest, these are usually syrups and lozenges. As an adjuvant in the treatment of children, it is worth using home remedies for angina. It is important to drink fluids (water with lemon, tea with honey and raspberries), and rinses are effective in soothing the throat.
W treatment of fever in children with angina acetylsalicylic acid or other salicylates cannot be given. Popular aspirin or polopyrin is dangerous to the liver, so it is allowed to take only from the age of 12.
In the case of frequently recurring inflammation of the tonsils and pharynx, it is sometimes considered more invasive method of fighting angina. It is about the removal of the tonsils. It is also sometimes recommended for some complications of angina, such as a peritonsillar abscess.
Angina in children – complications
Untreated or unsuccessfully treated angina it may recur and lead to complications. In children and adolescents – rarely in adults – complications such as rheumatic fever or acute glomerulonephritis have been observed. Sometimes there are also purulent changes, such as the aforementioned peritonsillar abscess, but also inflammation of the paranasal sinuses or the middle ear. More serious complications include meningitis and pneumonia.
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