My throat hurts when I swallow saliva

The pain in the throat when swallowing saliva indicates that the patient has acute epiglottitis. The harm of acute epiglottitis is relatively large, because if the disease is not controlled in the early stages of the disease, it is very likely to infect other parts of the throat, causing more serious health hazards to the patient! Next, I will introduce to you the treatment methods of acute epiglottitis.

1. Medication

(1) Glucocorticoids: Glucocorticoids can treat and prevent edema of the epiglottis, aryepiglottic folds, etc. They also have nonspecific anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, and anti-shock effects. Used in combination with antibiotics early on.

(2) Antibiotics: Select broad-spectrum antibiotics that can target Haemophilus influenzae type b infection for intravenous drip as early as possible, and switch to oral antibiotics after the condition stabilizes.

(3) Local treatment: Local administration of antibiotics and hormones by laryngeal aerosol inhalation can reduce local edema and promote the disappearance of inflammation.

2. Surgery

(1) Incision and drainage: If a local abscess is formed, incision and drainage should be performed, which is beneficial for quickly controlling the infection, reducing the dosage of antibiotics, alleviating sepsis, and shortening the course of the disease. If the infection focus has not yet been localized, do not make an incision too early to avoid the spread of inflammation.

(2) Establishing an artificial airway, including oral or nasal endotracheal intubation, cricothyroidotomy, tracheotomy, etc.

3. Supportive treatment

Oxygen therapy is used to supplement insufficient ventilation and improve overall condition. Those with difficulty eating are given supportive treatment such as intravenous fluid replacement.

4. Special type: combined with diabetes

(1) Control blood sugar For diabetic patients with poor blood sugar control, anti-infection treatment alone may not be effective. For this type of patients, hypoglycemic therapy is particularly important. Insulin is generally injected subcutaneously, and intravenous infusion can be used when necessary.

(2) Antibiotics: Large doses of antibiotics are used to control infection, and anti-anaerobic drugs are added. When using antibiotics, we must pay attention to the type of pathogen and its sensitivity to the drugs. Avoid blindly using broad-spectrum antibiotics for a long time, as this will increase the chance of fungal infection.

(3) Glucocorticoids In principle, systemic use of glucocorticoids is not recommended for patients with diabetes who are in stressful situations such as severe infections. However, for critically ill patients, glucocorticoid treatment may be considered while closely monitoring and controlling blood sugar.