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General health

Blisters on lips & in mouth.....bad breath...16m

58 replies

SlightlyMadSpider · 11/08/2007 21:42

Been feverish since Thurs. Today recorded temp of 39.4
Dr at walk in could find no obv cause - probably viral.
Had blisters on tongue, gums and inside of lips since Thurs. Much worse today. Prob 4-6+ blisters.
I had a coldsore about 10-14d ago.
I had an horrific sore throat which started Fri.
Oh and she has horrific bad breath and we are struggling to get anything in her motuh let alone a toothbrush.

So could it be

  1. coldsores
  2. hand foot & mouth w/o the foot & mouth
  3. Throat infection spread to mouth
  4. mouth ulcers as a result of being run down cos of virus?
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CarGirl · 11/08/2007 21:44

think it could be any of the suggested, back to the docs on Mon?

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Beauregard · 11/08/2007 21:44

Hand foot and mouth i would say!
Poor you

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PrettyCandles · 11/08/2007 21:45

Hand foot and mouth?

www.patient.co.uk/showdoc/23068750/

Someone who caught it off her LOs told me that you don't always get the hand and foot blisters.

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ledodgy · 11/08/2007 21:45

I agree all those could be possible.

Are there any spots at all anywhere else on her body I'm just wondering if it could be chicken pox?

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SueW · 11/08/2007 21:48

Yes, could be first cold sore infection.

DD's was misdiagnosed by three separate GPs whom we sought help from as she was so poorly. It was only when I went to an info evening on children's dentistry that I saw a photo of another child whose mouth was exactly like DD's that I knew. DD's gums swelled so much her teeth pretty much disappeared. Dentist I spoke to said she should have been given anti-viral meds in such a bad case

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ledodgy · 11/08/2007 21:50

primary cold sore infection

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lucykate · 11/08/2007 22:05

are the blisters white at all?, if they are, could be oral thrush. is quite a common thing in babies.

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SlightlyMadSpider · 11/08/2007 22:34

Sorry for diappearing. Takeaway arrived just as I hit post. DD3 woke in pain whilst eating. Have given her nurofen and now she is spending 2mins in a sugar induced hyper and 10 mins in a grump I feel rotten leave me alone stooper.

I am heading to bed to get some sleep as I will be getting up with her in the morning. Will look at the links tomorrow.

I did at first think it was the coldsore angle at first but she is just so poorly I wasn't so sure.

Oh and no blisters or rash anywhere else Dr checked thoroughky for that.

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SlightlyMadSpider · 11/08/2007 22:34

And the blisters are more creamy/yellowish

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SlightlyMadSpider · 12/08/2007 09:17

Well had a horrific night. Was up every 2 hours with her. Her temp has rocketed again.

Have looked at some pics for primary cold sore infection & hand foot and mouth - I can't see any real difference between them and it could be either.

From what I can see it is just a case of sitting it out with either - as the blisters are well formed I think it would be too late by Monday for anti-virals.

In the absence of any hand/foot or nappy genital lesions I am currently assuming it is a primary coldsore infection. I just never knew they could make you so poorly .

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PrettyCandles · 12/08/2007 10:13

Poor you and poor her! Are you able to keep her hydrated? Will she take any liquids? Have you tried cool wet cloths to try and get her temp down? You do know that you can alternate Calpol and Baby Nurofen at shorter intervals than just one of the drugs alone to get the temp down?

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SlightlyMadSpider · 12/08/2007 10:49

Yep...doing all that PC.

She has just perked up a bit. I am being a bit naughty and giving her juice thru a teat rather than a cup to get the fluids in.

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SlightlyMadSpider · 12/08/2007 15:16

She is screaming cos she is hungry

And screaming at the sight of food now

Has just had 2 yoghurts but still hungry

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nightcat · 12/08/2007 21:24

Could it be a reaction to a vaccination? My friend who is a homeopath treated a few young children for similar reactions, don't know with what though.

Doctor saying it could be virus might be a clue, check what she may have been vaccinated for recently and it may be a mild form of that?

Mouth sores are a sign of struggling immune system.

Best to go for soft rice-based dish rather than dairy/wheat derivatives.

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SlightlyMadSpider · 12/08/2007 21:35

No recent jabs (MMR about 3-4weeks ago).

The syptoms fit hand foot and mouth (apart from the foot & mouth). As far as I have seen this is associated with very high temp. She certainly ticks that box, headaches (she has been holding her head), vomiting/diarohea (she has had a couple of softer than usualy stools).

The syptoms for primary cold sore infection are very similar so could equally be that.

She now has some lesions around her teeth - especially her newest teeth. These are a bit different though - they are less blistery and more greeny/grey and yucky. I am wondering if this is a secondary/opportunistic bacterial infection which is why her breath smells so bad.

She is refusing most food that has to be chewed in any form. She has refused soggy jam sandwich, sogyg rice crispies and even soup (I guess that was probably sore because of salt). All she as eaten today is about 4 baby yoghurts and a few choc buttons which she has let melt in the mouth. She is clearly very hungry though but is frightened to put anything in mouth

Will take her to GP tomorrow and see if he can distinguish between hand foot & mouth and cold sores (more so that I know where I am wrt contagiousness as I am supposed to be hosting a playdate on Weds). I also want him to check any possible bacterial infection too.

It just makes me so to see her so upset and I am so helpless. She has cried more in the last 36hrs than she has in her whole life. She is usually such a placid girl that isn't phased by a single thing . I have been verging on tears today trying to help her eat.

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SlightlyMadSpider · 12/08/2007 21:36

Soory "apart from foot & hand".

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neolara · 13/08/2007 12:16

My DD got the cold sore virus and had lots of horrible ulcers in her mouth. She really struggled to eat most things, but the doctor recommended eating things like ice-cream, lollies and jelly as the cold would easy the pain. Sure enough, ice-cream went down fine and after a few days she was back on normal food. The GP said that when children first get the cold sore virus, the symptoms can be particularly virulent. Your poor DD. Hope she starts feeling better soon.

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Bubbaloo · 13/08/2007 14:25

Hope she is feeling better soon.
Ds1 had hand foot and mouth a couple of weeks ago and was really poorly with it.His whole mouth and tongue were covered in blisters and he couldn't eat anything for 5 days due to the pain.
Eventually our gp gave him some antibiotics and thank goodness they kicked in and he started eating again shortly afterwards.

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SlightlyMadSpider · 13/08/2007 17:22

Been to GP. He doesn't think it is hand foot and mouth cos of lack of hand & foot (but wouldn't rule it out).

Agrees it could be oral herpes infections (coldsores). No bacterial infection so no antibiotics. He did say it looked quite severe and would have given antivirals a day or two ago but too late for that.

Today DP has been at home with her and all that has passed her lips since 8am is 1/2 a friut puree pot and 3fl oz of milk. I think she will have to go back tomorrow with dehydration .

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Bubbaloo · 13/08/2007 17:49

Oh dear,sorry she's not any better.
Ds1 also didn't have anything on his hands or feet except for 2 tiny pinprick spots on the soles of one foot.Our gp also didn't want to give antibiotics as he said it was viral but he was so poorly that after 3 days of screaming and not eating,he prescribed them.His mouth was so sore that he wouldn't even eat fruit pots or yoghurts which are his favourites and whereas he normally sleeps with his dummy,he couldn't even have that either.I really hope she's over the worst and is better soon as it's absolutely heartbreaking seeing them in so much pain.
Btw,when ds wasn't drinking anything we kept syringing him with water-might be worth a try.

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SlightlyMadSpider · 13/08/2007 17:58

Yup have tried the syringe....no go.

She shakes her head at a bottle, cup and syringe. Have forced as much in as we can. Won't each yoghurts either now.

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PrettyCandles · 14/08/2007 06:43

Oh dear, Spider, this sounds really miserable .

Jelly is good for hydration as it's virtually all water. Plus the sweetness might make encourage her to take some. Make sure you use the sugar version, though, not the sugar-free.

What about pureed avocado or banana? Soft, sweet, nutritious and calorific. I would imagine that, with all those wounds in her mouth, fruit might be too acid and sting.

When you put anything in her mouth, does it help to try and aim it into her cheek, rather than onto her tongue?

I find that the 'conventional' syringes you get with medicines are the wrong shape for the baby's mouth and they rarely co-operate with it when they are very young and if they are feeling particularly poorly. The Baby Nurofen syringe is a better shape, but evn that has a square end and requires the baby to open wide. The best I've found are the eye-dropper style, because they are smooth and rounded at the end, and bcause you squeeze the bulb, rather than push a plunger, you have greater control over it.

Even if you manage to squirt a just couple of ml of liquid into the side of her mouth every 5mins, you will go a long way towards preventing dehydration. You can even do this while she's asleep as long as you only squirt in 1 or 2 ml at a time. My mum said she kept painting my brother's lips with water using a soft paintbrush to keep him taking some liquids.

Hope this eases soon. It's so gutting to see your LO ill and distressed, and not be able to make it all better.

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SlightlyMadSpider · 14/08/2007 10:29

We have been getting about 2oz of milk in every couple of hours whilst awake since yesterday evening.

She is a lot perkier this morning and now I feel teh battle is physcological now more than pain as when she takes her milk she doesn't seem uncomfortable.

I have stayed off work today so I can see what she is taking - DP (or should I say my prick of a P) didn't tell me that she had taken virtually nothing yesterday until I got home from work at 5pm when it was too late to speak to GP .

It will be a hard call to say she needs to be considered for IV fluids and admit she needs to go to hosp - but if she carrys on as she is for hte rest of the day I will be happy.

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SueW · 14/08/2007 12:34

Poor thing. I have been thinking of her a lot the past few days and hoping you were getting through.

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PellMell · 14/08/2007 12:48

wet nappies?
Poor little thing and of course poor you because it breaks your heart doesn't it
I think I would want her seen again by someone in paediactrics to make sure she doesn't have an issue with her immune system.
Has she been an otherwise healthy baby?

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