Participants	Inclusion criteria	Exclusion criteria
Patients	Previously healthy adults (aged ≥18 years) Acute illness (duration ≤7 days) Presenting with sore throat as the main symptom and have a FeverPAIN score ≥2	Patients not consenting Inability to obtain throat swabs Treating clinician believes that the most likely cause of the sore throat is something other than a bacterial or viral infection (that is, thrush, trauma, referred pain, gastro-oesophageal reflux disease) Patients who are known or thought to have significant immune compromise (such as those with leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma, AIDS, asplenia, congenital immunodeficiency, undergoing chemotherapy, or recent corticosteroid therapy). Patients on immunosuppressive therapy (including oral and inhaled steroids) Active haematological malignancy Undergoing treatment for cancer or has a life-limiting illness (for example, end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD]) Currently pregnant Have been on antibiotics for this illness
Healthy volunteers	1. Healthy adults (aged ≥18 years) who have had no sore throat symptoms for >4 days	Patients not consenting Patients currently taking antibiotics Inability to obtain throat swabs Active haematological malignancy (undergoing treatment for cancer or has a life-limiting illness [for example, end-stage COPD)]) Currently pregnant