Swollen Glands, Sore Throat, Swollen Gums, White Spots On Tongue. Should I Visit A Doctor?

Posted on Sun, 1 Jan 2012

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sun, 1 Jan 2012 Answered on

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 Last reviewed on

Question : Hi, I'm an usually healthy 34 year old male. For the last three days my glands have been swollen, i have a sore throat, swollen gums, painful white spots on my tongue and a cold sore. What donyou think i could have? GPs are closed as its new year's day. Is this something that can wait a few days or should I go to a walk in?

Answered by Dr. Naveen (48 minutes later)

Hi

Thanks for the query

The above mentioned features are of upper respiratory tract infection. The swollen glands are due to the infection in the throat. Whenever there is infection in the throat or oral cavity, the lymph nodes (also called glands) get enlarged as a response to the infection to fight against the infection. And even the cold sore is an exaggerated response to the upper respiratory tract infection.

Most of the times, the upper respiratory tract infection is or viral in origin and is usually self limiting. You can take symptomatic medicines for time being and if the symptoms do not subside within 3-4days, it is better to visit the doctor for a thorough evaluation and management.

Till then, you can take anti-inflammatory medicines (such as diclofenac or ibuprofen), do throat gargles with povidone iodine solution 3-4 times a day after food, drink plenty of warm water, and avoid chilled beverages and coffee for few days.

Hope I have answered your query; I will be available for the follow-up queries.

Regards
Dr. Naveen Kumar N.
ENT and Head & Neck Surgeon

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Raju A.T