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Local Health Update for NOrth Fulton County
Strep is increasing among children and adults
We saw another uptick in strep cases this week - nearly double the positive cases that we had seen the week before. Generally, strep is beginning with the children and then moving to their parents/caregivers about a week later.
Often, strep can be treated rather easily with one course of antibiotics.
STREP:
Severity of strep throat can vary from person-to-person. The common symptoms are as follows:
- Sudden high fever
- Mild soreness in throat
- Redness in throat with white patches
- Headache
- Chills
- Loss of appetite
- Cervical lymphadenopathy (swollen lymph nodes in the neck)
- Swollen tonsils
- Difficulty in swallowing food or water
- Pain when swallowing
- Nausea and vomiting is seen in younger children
We are finally seeing a dip in upper repspiratory viruses such as Flu, Covid and RSV. We may finally be on the other side of that.
Testing Options
At SmartMED, we offer both Antigen and PCR testing. Antigen testing is most accurate after day 3 of symptoms and can return a result in less than 15 minutes. For a more accurate and timely diagnosis, you can consider using a PCR test. The PCR (molecular test) uses one swab to test for Flu A & B, Covid and RSV at the same time, and returns a results in less than 40 minutes.