 [ Symptoms ] how do i know if my toddler has strep throat i have had a sore throat for couple nites and just noticed spots on the tonsils i plan on going to a dr tomorrow morning for antibiotics but i am concerned about my 3 year old i did not see any spots in her mouth are there any other symptoms i should be watching out for she is recovering from a cold from over a week ago but it is been improving [ Disease ] trying to determine conclusively that a child has strep just by looking at the throat is not much better than a coin toss 50 correct this is why we do throat cultures yes strep does have a characteristic appearance and even smell that can increase a clinician is medical accuracy beyond the coin toss but in the end the culture is the definitive test