The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) recently issued treatment guidelines recommending that physicians should prescribe antibiotics for patients with sore throats only after a positive diagnosis of group A streptococcus. According to statistics, 15 million visits are made each year for sore throat in the United States, with the vast majority of sore throat patients being caused by viral infections and only about 5%?15% (adults) or 20%?30% (children) by group A streptococcal infections, but 70% of sore throat patients are prescribed antibiotics by their doctors. Patients with viral infections will have to bear the potential risk of adverse drug reactions and resistance to antibiotics. Therefore, the guidelines recommend that physicians first confirm the presence of a bacterial infection in patients with sore throats. If the patient has a cough, runny nose, hoarseness, diarrhea or mouth ulcers, the infection is most likely to be viral and no bacterial testing is necessary. Patients who lack similar symptoms and have a sudden onset of sore throat, dysphagia, or fever are more likely to have a streptococcal infection and should receive a rapid antigen test for streptococci.