Mis/Undiagnosed by Dr. Please Help (m)..

[spankyandrex]

I am posting for my co worker whose son is very sick.  He is about 21 years old. For a few weeks now he has been having the following symptoms and getting progressively worse.  He was first diagnosed with strep throat.  Antibiotics made him feel a little bit better.  Vicodin did not even help his sore throat, it is very extreme. THen he went back to his Dr. and then he said he had GERD.  The meds he gave him it said on the label, do not take if you have any of these symptoms (which had most), so he is not going to take them.  He does not believe he has GERD.  What if anything, do you think he might have OR I know you can't diagnose, but give me some ideas/routes to take for him to pursue perhaps with another Dr.  Here are his symptoms:
1.  Extreme sore throat, not even Vicodin helps.
2.  Drainage in back of throat.
3.  Body aches.
4.  Coughing
5.  Headaches
6.  Can't speak after a short period due to pain.
7.  Hacking up lots of phlegm.
8.  Wheezy breathing and difficulty breathing.

I think he has pneumonia.  Thank you very much in advance for any advice you can give.  

[cmusical07]

Your friend's son definitely needs to be seen by a physician. Typically one who has pneumonia would have increased pain in his/her chest. At first glance I would say the flu is a high probability, but further assessment from a physician in the ER is recommended. Also, did his physician prescribe Vicodin for his sore throat? This is typically not done for strep ...

[spankyandrex]

THANK YOU, I'm printing this and giving it to his father right now. I'll follow up with how he's doing as soon as I know.
Sandra

[National Jewish Health]

This may or may not be a strep throat.  A number of other bacteria can cause a very sore throat that, on examination, resembles strep throat.  The fact that he still has the symptoms you describe below indicates that he is seriously ill.  Some strep infections, if they get into the blood and spread to other parts of the body, can be life threatening.  From your description, he probably does have pneumonia.  When a strep infection of the throat continues to hurt so bad that he "can't speak after a short period due to pain" he may have developed a peritonsillar abscess of the throat.  This is a bad complication.  If so, this could spread to tissues adjacent to the throat.

I think this person is in great danger.  He should be seen immediately in a large hospital emergency room, be hospitalized and seen on an emergency basis by an Infectious disease specialist.  In all likelihood he will require treatment with intravenous antibiotics.

Please give us a follow-up to let us know how he does.