Sore throat

“ The danger of permanent deafness which so often follows a sore throat as well as a cold in the head, should cause every mother or caretaker earnestly to begin treatment at the very first sign of a sore throat. When a little baby gulps or cries on swallowing, a sore throat should always be suspected and remedial measures promptly instituted. ”

“ Some authors have separated a special form of ulcerative sore throat occurring in those enfeebled from long exposure to unwholesome influences, such as nurses, hospital attendants, etc., in whom the first symptom is pain in deglutition, especially of saliva. The tongue is furred and the breath is offensive. There is loss of appetite, with general lassitude, feebleness of circulation, and more or less elevation of temperature. Intense headache is often present. Under suitable treatment recovery is rapid. ”

“ They should be examined by a skilled practitioner, that the danger may be modified in the outset. An ordinary sore throat may easily be converted into a malignant type by improper treatment; as in case of the sore throat of scarlet fever, for instance, the greatest danger arises from giving hot drinks, or applying some severe irritant to the membranes of the throat. It is well in all cases of sore throat to apply cooling treatment; this may be done by the following means: Wring a cloth out of hot water, wrap it around the throat, and cover with a dry flannel. Change every hour or two ”

“ A predisposing factor which applies alike to diphtheria and all other throat affections is the abnormal condition of the nose and [Pg 798] throat. When these important parts are in an unhealthy condition, where mouth breathing exists and other conditions inimical to normal health, the patient is more predisposed to all forms of maladies of this region, and the attack when developed is more apt to be of a serious character. The more ordinary forms of sore throat, such as tonsilitis, are frequently due to defects in the sanitary conditions and surroundings of the home. ”

“ In the fever which has just been described there is always some degree of redness in the skin, and the throat is not without an uneasy sensation. Where it happens that the throat is full of little ulcers attended with considerable pain, there the disease, though the skin be ever so red, is not denominated from the colour, but from the soreness of the throat, and obtains the name of malignant sore-throat ”

“ Bronchitis often supervenes upon sore throat, by the extension of the inflammation downward into the chest. Chilling of the surface by exposure to cold, drenching rains, is a frequent cause, by reason of the intimate sympathy existing between the skin and the mucous membrane. ”

“ The disease itself acts on the human body through the formation of poisons which the bacteria generate by their growth. If the germs have secured a foothold in the upper throat, then the well-known membrane is formed and the toxins produced spread through the blood and cause [Pg 405] headache and fever, even before any experience of sore throat is felt. The temperature rises very high, the child begins to vomit, and the pulse becomes weak, and after about seven days a large percentage of these throat cases begin to improve. ”

“ Sneezing and frequent attacks of nose bleed are often common symptoms. The tendency of the disease is to extend backward often causing headache, deafness, roaring in the ears and post-nasal disease which results in a chronic sore throat, the latter disease often being the one for which the patient seeks advice. If allowed to progress uninterruptedly the throat gradually becomes more irritable, associated with an annoying cough, and the voice becomes harsh and has a nasal tone. The general health is impaired, the nervous system excitable ”

“ Sore Throat.—An old-fashioned remedy for sore throat, and a very good one, too, is to bind on each side of the throat a piece of salt pork. The surface of the pork may be slightly covered with black pepper, in order to increase its drawing power. This is allowed to remain on all night, but should be taken off in the morning. During the day a flannel is worn about the neck.
A gargle for sore throat may be made by dissolving half a teaspoonful of chlorate of potash in a cupful of warm water. ”

“ The severe cases were mixed with others of scarlatina simplex. The violence of the attack lay in the throat-affection, the congestion of the brain, or the irritability of the stomach and bowels, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea being early symptoms, as in the malignant sore-throat with rash a century before. ”

“ Frequent sore throat may be due to enlarged tonsils which either need treatment or removal. To one who has frequent colds in the head, the out-of-door life and morning sponge bath and moderate eating will be of help. ”

“ In the days of our grandmothers, the first thing that the anxious mother did when a child complained of sore throat was to get a spoon and look for white patches in the back of the throat. With severe cases of diphtheria which these white patches foretold, the growths of membrane would be so rapid as to obstruct the breathing, and the child—for the disease is preëminently one of childhood would be in danger of dying of strangulation. The doctor's remedy for this condition was to make an incision in the throat below this accumulation and insert a tube through which the breathing might continue. ”

“ A Cause of Throat Disease.—The disease known as "clergyman's sore throat" is believed by many eminent physicians to have its chief origin in excessive venery. It is well known that sexual abuse is a very potent cause of throat diseases. ”

“ The only resource, then, is to treat every suspicious case of sore throat as if the disease were really diphtheria, until a diagnosis is established as near the truth as possible. Children that are afflicted with throat inflammations should be kept from school. ”

“ The most frequent cause of throat trouble is the action of cold upon the heated body, especially during active perspiration. For this reason a cold bath should not be taken while a person is perspiring freely. The muscles of the throat are frequently overstrained by loud talking, screaming, shouting, or by reading aloud too much. People who strain or misuse the voice often suffer from what is called “clergyman’s sore throat.” ”

“ The Tonsils are frequently the seat of inflammation, and acute tonsillitis or quinsy is one of the most common forms of sore throat. This affection is usually induced by cold, but it would appear to arise under other conditions also, such as digestive disturbances, &c. It is said to be more common in persons of rheumatic constitution, and one attack predisposes to others. The symptoms come on somewhat suddenly .and sharply, with chill followed by fever, the temperature frequently attaining a high point of elevation. Pain is experienced in the act of swallowing from the outset. ”

“ Clyde.
“No. Personally I believe that, while a physician is often justified in deceiving his patient, he is never justified in fooling the public. In the long run they find him out and his influence for good is lessened. Yet that sore-throat theory is near enough true to be a strong temptation. Every sore throat is suspicious; that isn’t too much to say. And, with a thorough school-inspection system, it is quite possible that epidemics could be headed off by isolating the early-discovered cases of sore throat. ”

“ When the disease extends to the respiratory organs, often two or three months after the onset, there is cough and sore throat, blocking of the nose by the tenacious discharges and swollen mucosa, and in the pharynx, fauces, and nose the characteristic ulcer may be detected. The attendant constitutional symptoms are also much more marked—indigestion, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, rigors, profuse perspiration, high temperature, excited breathing and pulse, a yellowish or earthy hue of the skin, rapid emaciation, and great prostration. ”

“ In the common sore Throat, a local Inflammation is the Disease: All the Symptoms are derived from this Source: An acute throbbing Pain, greatly increased upon swallowing even Liquids, is the principal Grievance. In the other, the whole Habit suffers, as if by a Stimulus of a peculiar Nature and although the Throat is always more or less affected, yet it is sometimes the least Part of the Patient's Complaint; and Instances have occurr'd to me of considerable Sloughs 42being formed, before any Soreness or Pain in the Fauces hath been mention'd. ”

“ Sometimes a dairyman thinks that his child has nothing more serious than tonsillitis, and goes on selling milk. A great many epidemics have resulted from such cases. Sore throats should not be treated lightly, for the most severe forms of diphtheria may develop from germs that come from a throat that is only slightly sore. If there is a case of diphtheria in the town where you live, and if your throat feels the least bit sore, have your doctor examine it at once. If you do not wish to have your family doctor look at your throat, go to the health officer. ”

“ Loaf sugar and brandy relieves a sore throat; when very bad, it is good to inhale the steam of scalding hot vinegar through the tube of a tunnel. This should be tried carefully at first, lest the throat be scalded. For children, it should be allowed to cool a little.
A stocking bound on warm from the foot, at night, is good for the sore throat.
An ointment made from the common ground-worms, which boys dig to bait fishes, rubbed on with the hand, is said to be excellent, when the sinews are drawn up by any disease or accident. ”

“ Speech is often indistinct, but there is no hoarseness or cough unless the uvula is lengthened and tickles the back part of the tongue. Slight sore throat rarely requires any special treatment, aside from simple nursing. ”

“ If the stall is tight enough a steam bath may be given with much profit in the early stages.
Counter irritants applied to the throat, or, if need be, to the breast and sides of the chest will often give material relief, acting as derivatives and probably also by modifying the globulins in the exudate and thus influencing the course of the disease. In case of sore throat of a very high type it may be best to apply a compress or poultice, or even a piece of sheepskin for a day or two, until, by antithermics, cooling diuretics and soothing inhalations, the severity of the inflammation has abated. ”

“ Among the first symptoms of the disease are sore throat, swollen glands, fever, etc. Vomiting on a street car or at the movie may spread the disease to more than one child who might otherwise have escaped. One child who may have only a very light form of the disease may give it to another child in the most severe form. Any such group of classic symptoms—vomiting, fever, rapid pulse, and sore throat—should cause any parent immediately to isolate the little sufferer for several days—awaiting the "rash"—which usually puts in its appearance after three or four days of increasing temperature. ”

“ In peripneumony, inflammatory sore throat, and acute rheumatism, there is an inflamed condition of the lungs, of the parts about the throat, or of the muscles of the extremities: this shows that the excitement here is greater than in other parts of the body ”

“ The sore throat is always present in some degree; there is redness and swelling of the tonsils and soft palate, so that it is often very painful to swallow, while the glands beneath the jaw also swell and are painful. The temperature is generally higher than in measles, and much higher than in diphtheria, but it rarely exceeds 105° F.; the temperature falls to normal during the second week of the illness, or seventh to tenth day of disease. In no fever is the pulse quicker than in this disorder, and it may be 140 or 160 in a minute. ”

“ Nearly all colds in the head, and sore throats with coughing, are infectious; so the best thing to do whenever you have a bad cold in the head, or a sore throat, is to keep out in the open air as much as you can, until it is better. Of course, a cold is not such a serious 117thing in itself; but, if it is neglected, it may lead to some very dangerous troubles, particularly to inflammation of the lungs, and sometimes even of the kidneys or the liver or the heart. ”

“ A fluid discharge from the mucous membrane. Inflammation, as a rule, extends to the membrane of the sinuses of the head, and of the larynx and pharynx, causing the added complication of sore throat. Frequently the eyes are also affected. At the first stage of the attack the membrane is dry and irritable, followed by a watery discharge from the nostrils. Fever, more or less, makes its appearance, which is usually detected by placing a finger in the animal's mouth. In itself the disease is not very serious, but if neglected, or treated wrongly, may become complicated and dangerous. ”

“ Every one has a cure for sore throat, but simple remedies appear to be most effectual. Salt and water is used by many as a gargle, but a little alum and honey dissolved in sage tea is better. An application of cloths wrung out of hot water and applied to the neck, changing as often as they begin to cool, has the most potency for removing inflammation. ”

“ The onset is generally characterized by a rise of temperature from 100°F. to 104°F., chilliness, headache, and pain in the back and limbs. Albuminuria is common. The glands of the neck often become swollen. In mild attacks a slight sore throat is all that is complained of. In the majority of cases the disease attacks the throat and tonsils, and is characterized locally by the appearance of a membrane, which is usually gray or yellowish-white, elastic, and adheres tightly to the surface upon which it lies. ”