Sometimes, the pharynx, which is the part of the throat situated between the mouth and the larynx, or voice box, can be affected by a painful inflammation. In this case, we can say a sore throat has appeared. Usually, sore throats develop due to influenza or common colds, and most of the times they heal without complications. But, there exist also some situations when the sore throat can develop into a serious illness.



Sore throats come more often in winter, and it was seen that children are more affected than adolescents and adult people. There are acute sore throats, that are known to come suddenly and last 3-7 days, and chronic sore throats, that last much longer.

In 90-95 % of cases, sore throats are caused by viruses, like cold and flu viruses. It is known that because of them there appears an inflammation of the throat and sometimes they can cause an inflammation of the tonsils as well. There appear symptoms like congestion, hoarseness, cough, a runny nose, and fever. The level of pain can be mild or very severe, and it is known that in the most severe cases, the patient will not be able to eat, drink, swallow and speak.

Sore throats can be caused by adenoviruses too. This group of viruses causes infections of the lungs and ears, may provoke the symptoms mentioned before, and also white bumps on the tonsils and throat, vomiting, rash and diarrhea. They usually last for about a week.

The coxsackie virus is a type of virus that causes herpangina, a disease that occurs mostly among children under the age of ten. Also called summer sore throat, this disease can be very severe, and includes symptoms like the presence of tiny grayish-white blisters on the throat and mouth and a high fever. When those blisters break open, they cause a lot of pain, and people having this disease may also have abdominal pain, may vomitate, or feel very sick.

Sore throat can also be provoked by Epstein-Barr virus, which can also cause mononucleosis. Usually mononucleosis has mild symptoms and goes away quickly, but it can produce a very painful sore throat.

Sore throats can be also caused by bacteria. It is known that about 5 to 10 percent of all sore throats develop due to bacteria, and most of the times, a bacterium called group A Streptococcus is responsible for these infections. In this case, this type of sore throat is called strep throat.

The Gonococcus bacterium can also cause a bacterial sore throat, and this bacterium can cause the sexually transmitted disease gonorrhea too.

It is good to know that both viral and bacterial sore throats are contagious, and to treat bacterial sore throats antibiotics are very useful, but they have no effect against viral sore throats.

Not all the sore throats are caused by infection. There are irritants in the environment that can affect the pharynx: polluted air, chemical fumes, cigarette smoke and other.

Sore throats often can be found in allergic people too. It is important to know that these forms of sore throat are not contagious.