What tests can tell I have strep throat?
Your doctor may use a test called the rapid strep test. For this test, the doctor uses a long cotton swab to take some of the mucus from the back of your throat. The results of this test can be ready in about 15 minutes.
Your doctor may also do a culture of the mucus. A sample of the mucus is sent to a laboratory. This test is called a throat culture. It can take up to 2 days to learn the results of a strep culture.
The rapid strep test and the culture can tell your doctor if you have strep throat. If something else is causing your sore throat, these tests do not tell what it is.
Management of Group A Beta-Hemolytic Streptococcal Pharyngitis by CS Hayes, MD, MHA; H Williamson, Jr, MD, MSPH (American Family Physician April 15, 2001, http://www.aafp.org/afp/20010415/1557.html)
Written by familydoctor.org editorial staff