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concern over throat condition

I am a 31 year old male that has had a sore throat for over 2 months. My tonsils are swollen and it appears to be white patches (kind of similar to strep throat although not as painful) in the very back of the throat behind the tonsils. My doctor diagnosed me with allergic rhinitis and my ENT diagnosed me with acid reflux. I am currently taking 20mg 2x per day of Omeprazole. The ENT stated that it would take up to 3 months of taking the medication to see any change in the throat. Let me give you a history that is not related to acid reflux so you can better understand my anxiety. On May 4, I had unprotected oral sex on a female where I performed on her and we also had condom protected vaginal sex.  Approximately a week or two later, I developed the sore throat. Strep tests (3 of them) have all come back negative. I tested negative for HIV, syphilis, and gonorrhea (both throat and penile). I have taken two round of antibiotics and one round of a steroid. Still no change. I even asked my ENT about cancer and he ruled that out. What does this sound like to you? I can eat without much pain and there is little pain as long as I am hydrated. I am also taking Allegra and Mucinex.
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Avatar universal
What are the chances that this is oral hpv? I have had three strep tests and all came back negative. Does hpv usually affect the mouth and if so, does it affect the tonsils? My tonsils look like it is from constant drainage.
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242587 tn?1355424110
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Your throat infection may or may not be related to the sexual encounter you describe.

A sore throat, persistent for two months is rather unusual and definitely atypical for Strep throat, especially after two courses of antibiotics, assuming that one or both of the antibiotics given were capable of eradicating a conventional strep infection.  Your doctors were right to check for Gonorrhea as that definitely cause a refractory sore throat.  Another organism that can cause, not uncommonly cause acute and/or chronic sore throat is Mycoplasma Pneumonia.  And, finally, two bacteria that can, but rarely do, cause a persistent sore throat are Yersinia and Tularemia, but an individual with these infections is likely to be suffering from a more severe illness, than yours seems to be.  You might want to ask your doctor about these and whether they would likely be sensitive to the antibiotics given.

The following, from Mandell’s Textbook of Infectious Diseases puts throat infections in perspective:

“Acute pharyngitis is more frequently caused by viruses than by bacteria. Infectious mononucleosis and adenovirus infections frequently give rise to exudative (pus)pharyngitis and thus may closely mimic streptococcal sore throat. Herpes simplex viruses 1 and 2, influenza, and parainfluenza viruses may also simulate streptococcal pharyngitis . Even when careful microbiologic techniques are used to detect bacteria, mycoplasma, and viruses, no causative agent can be detected in a substantial proportion of all cases of acute sore throat.”

Acute Infectious Mononucleosis is another common cause of persistent sore throat.

Given the length of time this infection has persisted,  the best advice I can give is that you ask your doctor to arrange for consultation with an Infectious Disease Specialist, the person best qualified to sort things out and rule out other more serious causes of persistent tonsillar enlargement.

Good luck
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Avatar universal
I forgot to list in the previous post that I do have constant mucus in the throat and it feels like it just stays there. I do have stuffiness of the nose and can feel post nasal drip. I have had post nasal drip for several years, but never a sore throat lasting this long or the constant mucus production.
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