Post-tonsillectomy advise please?

[whatsthetimemrwolf]

DS aged 4 had his tonsils out on Thursday and was discharged from hospital on Friday.

When we got home on Friday he had a high temp and after eventually speaking to someone on the ward we were told to take him to out of hours doc at hospital (perfect place to go when trying to avoid infections!). Anyhow they prescribed AB's as they thought it might be an infection. He has been on his AB's for 2 full days and still has a temp.

He is drinking water but I can't really get him to eat. He says he's hungry, will choose something he wants to eat but will only have one mouthful. He woke up very distraught in the night with ear pain. We are regularly giving him paracetamol, ibuprofen and occasional codeine. I've just read on MN that codeine can cause constipation. He hasn't had a poo(sorry if TMI)since op but he hasn't eaten much either.

Is all of this normal?

Also DD is due to play at a friends house today but her friends sister has a cough and runny nose. Should I cancel to avoid her bringing germs home?

Thank you in advance.

[MuffinTumMum]

Hi there

my DS (aged 5) had his done a month ago, so know how worrying this is for you...

If you are worried I would say ring the ward back and take their advise on this. We were told to go straight back to the ward if there was any sign of infection for the 10 days after the op.

Also keep a track of his temp each hour so that you know if it has peaked yet and on the way down so you can be sure the AB's have kicked in and are working for him.

Eating is quite important as it clears the debris from the throa, I tried to time food with his meds so that I got a window of opportunity when the pain was eased. Also we gave him whatever he fancied to eat - however crap it was just to get him eating again!

Personally I would not do the play date - we kept DS in the house and away from other kids for a full fortnight after the op - hard I know but we had waited so long for the op that its didnt seem worth chancing it -also we have a lot of swine flu where we are.

Hope that your little one is one the mend soon, it is such a worry but once they are over the worst of it they really do seem to bounce back very quickly..

all the best x

[whatsthetimemrwolf]

Hi MuffinTumMum,

Thanks for posting. Hope your DS has fully recovered and that its all been worth it.

I phoned the ward and they were very unhelpful. I was told if I was concerned I should take DS to the GP. As hes only been on the AB's for 2 days I think I should give them a bit longer to kick in. I don't really want to take him to the docs surgery unless absolutley necessary.

The ward also said he's unlikely to want to eat if he has a temperature and feeling generally unwell. I have stocked up on every possible food he likes but he gets no further than 1 mouthful of food at a time. I am trying to time it with the meds but still no luck. I'm so worried that he's going to have a bleed if I can't get him to eat but I just don't know what else I can do.

It wouldn't be DS going on play date but his sister. Do you think I should keep her at home for the duration as well? My Hospital advised me to keep him away from everyone for 10 days but I didn't think to ask if his sister needed to stay at home as well. Were you advised 2 weeks or was that for safe measures?

[MuffinTumMum]

We were advised 2 weeks - DS has other siblings and I kept them all at home for the first week and then let them have a couple of play dates the second - asking other parents each time if they had any colds etc. It does seem precious but I felt worth it for peace of mind...
Sorry your hospital have been unhelpful, I appreciate that taking him to the docs is not what you want. Maybe get a call back from your GP and ask for their advise on how soon he should be picking up? With my DS I could say on average at the end of day two on AB's he would start to pick up..at least the high temp would be abating.

I worried alot about bleeding and thank goodness did not have to deal with it (am useless with ill kids!) I think it is natural to feel like that..but I guess if he doesnt want to eat then there is not much you can do..as you say, a mouthful here and there will be better than nothing at all. One more thing - if your DS has empty tum, then try and stick with the Calpol as opposed to the nurafen as that can give them tummy ache if taken on empty tum. Hard again, I know when you are trying to control pain and temperature!

I hope that tomorrow sees a difference for you - if not I would be inclined to contact your consultants secreatary and request a call back, again, I was given this green light when we left hospital, it is a crying shame that policies differ from hospital to hospital.

It will be worth it! This is our first month clear of tonsilitis for a LONG time! He is eating like a horse and sleeping really well...a new boy! And the best thing of all is that he has completely forgotten about the op and feeling dreadful! Oh, forgot to mention that day 5-7 were the worst for us so keep going with the meds!

all the best x

[whatsthetimemrwolf]

Thanks very much for sharing your experience and offering advice. DS has eaten a small bowl of shreddies today so I'm feeling rather pleased about that. Think I will ring the docs tomorrow if theres no improvement in his temp though. A month and no tonsilitus, thats not something to grumble at!!

[helpYOUiWILL]

my ds is on day 6 today and isnt eating hardly at all. We werent given codiene - can i get that "over the counter"? My ds is aged 6yrs