Mistik et al reported a simple score for identifying a patient with a viral sore throat. This can help to identify a patient who may not require antibiotic therapy. The authors are from Erciyes University and Bunyamin Somyurek Family Medicine Centre in Kayseri, Turkey.
Parameters:
(1) headache
(2) stuffy nose
(3) sneezing
(4) temperature in °C
(5) tonsillar exudate or swelling
Parameter
Finding
Points
headache
absent
1
present
0
stuffy nose
absent
0
present
1
sneezing
absent
0
present
1
temperature in °C
< 37.5°C
0
>= 37.5 °C
1
tonsillar exudate or swelling
either
0
neither
1
total score =
= SUM(points for all 5 parameters)
Interpretation:
• minimum score: 0
• maximum score: 5
• The higher the score the more likely that the sore throat is viral.
Score
Percent Viral
0
8%
1
15-20%
2
25-36%
3
42-55%
4
62-71%
5
82%
Performance:
• The diagnostic accuracy was 68%.
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