Why is it painful to swallow?

Symptoms:

You have a very sore throat that feels like swallowing razor blades. You have a headache and a temperature. You have a very sore throat and swallowing is painful, your voice sounds croaky and you have a fever, your breath smells. Your tonsils are swollen with yellow dots.

Your six-year-old child has a fever, sore throat, a loud barking cough and swollen glands in the neck. You don’t believe in vaccination and didn’t have your child vaccinated. It could be:

Strep throat from a bacterial infection caused by Group A streptococcus bacteria. Stop it:

Take paracetamol for your discomfort and suck throat lozenges. If the sore throat doesn’t improve within 48 hours see your doctor because you may need an antibiotic.