Yes, strep throat can be dangerous if left untreated, as it can lead to serious complications like rheumatic fever (damaging the heart, joints, brain, skin) or kidney inflammation, requiring prompt antibiotic treatment to prevent these severe outcomes. While most cases are mild and resolve with antibiotics, failure to complete the full course can allow the infection to spread and cause long-term problems, including heart valve damage, abscesses, or even rare, severe conditions like toxic shock syndrome.
However, if symptoms don't go away, or you or your child have a fever of at least 101° F that lasts a few days, call your primary care provider. Other symptoms along with the sore throat that might be cause for concern include: Dehydration. Trouble breathing.
Though strep throat (streptococcus) is often very painful and highly contagious, it doesn't often require a trip to the emergency room. However, in some rare cases, patients with extreme symptoms should seek emergency medical attention for proper care.
If untreated, strep throat can cause complications, such as kidney inflammation or rheumatic fever. Rheumatic fever can lead to painful and inflamed joints, a specific type of rash, or heart valve damage. Strep throat is most common in children, but it affects people of all ages.
Symptoms of strep throat occur quickly
“You can also have headaches, and bellyaches or abdominal pain with it as well,” Dr. Patel said. “But at the back of your throat where your tonsils are, you can notice redness. Sometimes you can have white patches of exudates, which is kind of like pus or streaks of that as well.”
The most common symptoms of strep throat are a sudden and severe sore throat, pain when you swallow, and fever. Other symptoms include swollen tonsils and lymph nodes and white or yellow spots on the back of a bright red throat. You may also have a headache and belly pain.
Symptoms can be many and can include:
As mentioned before, allowing strep throat to run its course without the use of antibiotics may cause a higher risk of complications, such as rheumatic fever, especially in children.
Strep throat is highly contagious and you're contagious for 2-5 days before symptoms, but if treated with antibiotics, you're usually no longer contagious after 24-48 hours (1-2 doses) and can return to school/work, while untreated, you can spread it for 2-3 weeks. To prevent spread, wash hands often, cover coughs, don't share items, and stay home until fever-free and 24 hours on antibiotics, say Healthline, Northwestern Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medicine, and KidsHealth.
As we've established, bacteria from strep can cause pneumonia if it gets into your lungs and airways. Pneumonia can cause an array of symptoms that vary in severity including fever, shortness of breath, chest pain, and joint pain.
“But if they're sick from a virus or catch strep from someone, the bacteria can invade their body through the mucous membranes in the nose and throat. This can cause the type of severe disease we describe as invasive group A strep infection, which can be deadly especially for children.”
Strep must be diagnosed by a doctor. An urgent care facility is the best bet in receiving fast and effective treatment for strep. The doctor will prescribe an antibiotic to cure the bacterial infection. If you have a cold, it is best to cope with the symptoms at home.
Suspect Sepsis
Sepsis is usually diagnosed from a combination of symptoms. Be on the lookout for common signs of infection like diarrhea, vomiting and sore throat, as well as these sepsis symptoms: Fever. Warm skin.
Symptoms of strep throat can appear suddenly and are usually worse on the second day. Most children develop symptoms about 2 to 5 days after they're exposed.
7 signs and symptoms not to ignore
Don't share bedding or pillows
“While sleeping, a sick person can transfer bacteria or virus onto their sheets through sweating and nasal dripping or saliva,” Johnston says. These germs can live on surfaces for hours or days and spread through objects such as bedding, linens, and pillows to other people, notes Susky.
You got strep throat from the highly contagious Streptococcus pyogenes (Group A strep) bacteria, usually by breathing in droplets from an infected person's coughs/sneezes, touching a contaminated surface then your mouth/nose, sharing food/drinks, or close contact like kissing or touching skin sores. It spreads easily in close settings like schools or households, often from someone who is already sick.
Yes, strep throat can often resolve on its own, as the body fights off the Streptococcus bacteria, but it's generally not recommended to skip antibiotics because untreated strep carries serious risks like rheumatic fever (causing heart damage), kidney inflammation, and abscesses, and antibiotics quickly relieve symptoms and stop spreading the highly contagious infection. While symptoms may improve in a few days without treatment, the bacteria can linger, causing complications and making you contagious for longer (up to three weeks), whereas antibiotics clear the infection within about 24 hours.
6 complications of untreated strep throat
The bacteria that cause strep throat can be transmitted person-to-person by direct contact, especially from mucus droplets from the mouth, and indirect contact, such as kissing and sharing utensils or drinking cups.
If you don't seek medical help for your strep throat, you may find that your symptoms go away in about a week. However, not killing the infectious bacteria with antibiotics puts you at risk for serious complications such as kidney inflammation, rheumatic fever, abscesses, and scarlet fever.
Go to the emergency room (ER) if your sore throat causes any difficulty swallowing or breathing. This situation can be life-threatening and may suggest you have a serious infection, major swelling, or an allergic reaction that needs immediate care.
Symptoms of sepsis
Fast, shallow breathing. Sweating for no clear reason. Feeling lightheaded. Shivering.
If the strep bacteria release toxins in multiple organs, it can create another rare, life-threatening condition called “streptococcal toxic shock syndrome” that can cause organ failure. Symptoms include shortness of breath, cough, fever, aches, pains, and chills.