 A rapid strep test may assist a clinician in deciding whether to prescribe an antibiotic to a patient with pharyngitis, a common infection of the throat. Viral infections are responsible for the majority of pharyngitis, but a significant proportion (20 % to 40 % in children and 5 % to 15 % in adults) is caused by bacterial infection. The symptoms of viral and bacterial infection may be indistinguishable, but only bacterial pharyngitis can be effectively treated by antibiotics. Since the major cause of bacterial pharyngitis is GAS, the presence of this organism in a patient's throat may be seen as a necessary condition for prescribing antibiotics. GAS pharyngitis is a self-limiting infection that will usually resolve within a week without medication. However, antibiotics may reduce the length and severity of the illness and reduce the risk of certain rare but serious complications.
