1 /5 Amber Reed: Went in on 5/24 with sore throat, swollen tonsils and a yellowish bump on left tonsil. Dr. Hassan did a strep swab, came back negative. Dx me with viral infection and sent me home with Claritin. May 26th, in ER, can barely swallow, left ear painful, left tonsil swollen half way into my throat. Dx with peritonsilar abscess and given IV antibiotics and steriods. Do better, there are other bacterial infections than just strep, and I suffered for 4 days because I was told it was viral and would go away on its own.