To think phoning 111 for this is ridiculous?

[vcfhmj]

I had a sore throat that began yesterday morning and has gotten progressively worse. I am grimacing when I swallow, it's absolute agony, have a temperature and a headache and have been up able to get up and on with it. It feels like tonsillitis to me but I haven't even looked at my tonsils as that would involve sitting/getting up.

My mum thinks I should call 111 and get an out of hours GP appointment. I said no, I'll just wait and phone GPS tomorrow.

However, she is saying the quicker you start antibiotics the better. I haven't been Ill in a long time and I actually started to call 111 then decided it was ridiculous and embarrassing to call about a sore throat so I hung up (before being answered obviously).

So I am asking the good people of Mumsnet. It's clearly not life threatening, I will survive, is it best to wait till tomorrow so as not to waste anyone's time?

White spots can appear on the tonsils whether the tonsillitis is viral or bacterial. It can be hard to tell what’s caused the tonsillitis. NHS website says a GP will usually need to carry out a swab test to be able to tell whether the tonsillitis is viral or bacterial (having said that, I have never known or heard of a GP doing this test so I don’t think it is carried out routinely). I guess most GPs just make a call based on how bad the symptoms seem to be and how much fuss the patient is making!

Most cases of tonsillitis will clear up on their own in a few days with lots of rest, fluids, painkillers and gargling with salt water. My DH gets it quite a lot and usually treats it at home. It is really unpleasant but will go away by itself in most cases.

He has needed antibiotics for it only once as far as I recall. That was after I called 111 myself because he was finding it hard to stay awake for more than about 30 minutes at a time and was vomiting. That one had turned into quinsy so needed antibiotics.

We should all avoid taking ABs as far as possible (yes, sometimes it is unavoidable). I read something a while back in which a scientist was saying the future AB resistance crisis is going to be a much bigger public health crisis than the pandemic was.

If your tonsils are inflamed with white spots (puss pockets) then it may be strep throat. Def strep if your breath smells like a dragon’s 🙊

I’ve got strep atm. Tonsils were covered in white pus. Started 10 day course of ABs on Thursday, pus has cleared, pain is much better but I’m still not 100% and am very tired. It’s horrible.

Is there a walk in doctors near you that's open today?

If it makes you feel any better 111 won’t think this is a waste of time at all given what you’ve described here. I worked there for years and you wouldn’t believe the things people phoned for, someone once called because she had snapped her acrylic nail and wanted it removed and her usual nail salon wasn’t open.

You can't buy 100% hydrogen peroxide in the UK, and you would have to really go out of your way to buy anything more concentrated than the commonly found type of solution I linked to. And yes, one would hope that anyone would follow the instructions on any medical product and use as appropriate.

I'm not saying that saline or aspirin might not be better, I'm just challenging you mocking a pp for a perfectly valid suggestion that many people use successfully to treat throat infections.

My SD is on her second dose at antibiotics for tonsillitis so it may be needed.

Absolutely. I have had conversations where people have said that it’s ok, they hardly ever take AB’s so they won’t have resistance to them. Absolutely terrifying.

I honestly haven't taken an antibiotic in around ten years

I occasionally use a hydrogen peroxide mouth wash. It's readily available, off the shelf, in chemists and supermarkets. It's made by Colgate, absolutely harmless. Pouring toilet bleach into a glass and gargling with that would be stupid and very, very harmful, though. People really need to use common sense.

Exactly lol

Yes I would call for that. It’s just out of hours GP

I’ve had tonsillitis and it’s an absolute bastard. I couldn’t appreciate how horrible it was until I got it! I sat in a walk in centre for 4 hours for antibiotics and within 24 hours I was feeling human again. I rarely take antibiotics but there is absolutely a place for them and terrible tonsillitis is one of them!! I’d call 111 or go to a walk in centre. No point suffering through this!

Strepsil’s throat lozenges are great. My dd used them a few weeks ago and they took the edge of the pain (tonsillitis).

Me too.
Dd also suffered badly with bacterial tonsillitis for a while. Swabs taken after a couple of episodes and definitely needed treatment, not just leaving.

There are plenty of times where tonsillitis does need treatment, but just wait and see.
I'd rather take proper medical advise from a doctor than some random person on MN tbh.

Unless your symptoms change drastically, starting any antibiotic treatment 24 hours early won’t make a huge difference

hope you feel better soon

Most tonsillitis is viral rather than bacterial so antibiotics have no impact.

This. The worst bout of tonsillitis I ever had - I was wiping saliva from my mouth as couldn't bear to swallow and was so obviously unwell in the waiting room that other patients were asking if I was ok - was deemed by GP to be viral so no need for antibiotics. He did however give me some prescription painkillers to help me while waiting for it to clear.

I had my tonsils removed in the mid 90s yet I still ended up with tonsillitis (or strep throat?) in January 2022. I'd been ill for about six weeks on the trot with a cold, then a chest infection, then a sinus infection so I was ready to launch myself into the sun by that point. I haven't taken antibiotics in more than a decade so they're not something I mess about with willy-nilly but I was desperate.

I saw a locum and she looked at my throat without swabbing it, and refused to give me antibiotics. She said it would clear up either way so I just had to ride it out 😩

I rarely take antibiotics but there is absolutely a place for them and terrible tonsillitis is one of them!!

Disagree. Bacterial tonsillitis is the place for them. Tonsillitis can still be terrible when it is viral.

Honey is not an ideal remedy for someone with diabetes.

Call 111 if you have white patches on your tonsils you need antibiotics- if you need them get them started today.

i had my tonsils out when i was 18, so the time i got such a sore throat that i could barely speak, or swallow and a raging temp and went from ok, to NOT OK in less than 8hrs i took the hint i had something really nasty.

Severe bacterial throat infection, horse pill sized antibiotics for 10 days shifted it.

if you still have tonsils, you're at risk of Quincy and shouldn't mess about if it comes on that quickly.

It's tonsillitis. Got given ten day penicillin

That’s good you got a diagnosis from a doctor & appropriate treatment.

Tonsilitis should clear itself without antibiotics, eventhough it takes longer. Its useful to gargle, a saline solution (a bit of kitchen salt in some water) will help if you dont have any herbs. Sage is the most powerful, but camomille is also good.
I lived on watermelons for a week last summer when I had tonsilitis. It helps to cool down your throat.