Plenty is going around, including a bug that requires antibiotics. That something is strep throat.
Dr. Cathy Cantor says she's "seeing strep in both school-age kids-- because I thought it was maybe that increase with kids going back to school-- but seeing an extreme amount in adults as well."
We asked the doctor what symptoms families need to watch out for. Dr. Cantor says, "The majority of people are going to complain of sore throat, fever. They may have some swelling in the neck from the lymph nodes swelling up, but just generally not feeling well at all."
Other symptoms can include a red throat, sometimes with white patches, nausea, chills, and difficulty swallowing.
The doctor says school-age children may only complain of headache or stomach ache. Dr. Cantor says, "It's extremely contagious so we definitely want to treat it right away with an antibiotic because that is something that needs to be treated, but also we ask folks to stay home for 24-48 hours after they've started treatment."
Along with strep, the doctor is seeing other typical fall illnesses. She says she's seeing a lot of colds, plenty of allergy sufferers, and sinus problems-- sometimes sinus infections and often post nasal drip.
One final note on strep throat. Dr. Cantor says strep throat that doesn't resolve could actually turn out to be mono. She says she's seen some cases of that recently as well.
