A child with strep throat has just started antibiotics. When is the child allowed to return to school?

A child with strep throat has just started antibiotics. When is the child allowed to return to school?

• A. Forty-eight hours after the first documented normal temperature.
• B. Twenty-four hours after the first dose of antibiotics.
• C. Forty-eight hours after the first dose of antibiotics.
• D. Twenty-four hours after the first documented normal temperature.

Answer: (B)

Starting antibiotics for strep throat quickly reduces contagiousness. After about 24 hours of appropriate antibiotic therapy, a child is generally no longer contagious, so they can return to school once they’ve been on antibiotics for a full day and feel well enough to participate. Waiting for fever to resolve or delaying return beyond 24 hours after the first dose isn’t needed, since the risk of spreading the infection drops substantially after the initial day of treatment.

Starting antibiotics for strep throat quickly reduces contagiousness. After about 24 hours of appropriate antibiotic therapy, a child is generally no longer contagious, so they can return to school once they’ve been on antibiotics for a full day and feel well enough to participate. Waiting for fever to resolve or delaying return beyond 24 hours after the first dose isn’t needed, since the risk of spreading the infection drops substantially after the initial day of treatment.