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General health

Anyone heard of 'Roseola' or is it 'Measles'?

47 replies

Mollie2403 · 13/02/2005 15:12

Hello everyone, I'm new to Mumsnet and just wondered if anyone has had a similar experience...

Just a bit of background first - I have identical twin boys (DS1 & DS2) who were born 2 1/2 months premature. They're almost 17 months old now (14 1/2 months corrected). They did have their initial vaccines @ 2, 3 and 4 months. However, they have not had their MMR yet. DH and I are not anti-vaccination but obviously with all the controversy about the MMR we want to do as much research as we can before we make a decision. We do understand that they are at risk from these diseases whilst we are taking our time deciding but at the same time we want to fully understand the risks involved with having the vaccines and where to have them should we decide on singles. Also, because they were premature we feel we should wait a little longer so they are a bit stronger.

I don't want this to start a debate about vaccinating - I know everyone has different views on the whole subject but I just wanted to start by describing how we feel about it so far.

Anyway, what happened is, last Monday DS2 suddenly started with a high temperature which lasted until Wednesday evening. I gave him Calpol which did help and apart from his temperature he seemed OK. He was a little slower with his food and drink but nothing to worry about.

When he woke on Thursday, his temperature had returned to normal however he started with a rash on his stomach, back and some on his face. He did get a viral rash all over just after Christmas which lasted for about two weeks. This rash looked similar but by Friday morning his eyes were a bit puffy and the rash was all over his face. It was a pinkish rash, spotty in some areas and blotchy in others. However, he was fine in himself, still no temperature, laughing, giggling, playing and eating well!

Obviously I was still very worried and took him to the doctors. When the doctor seen him he said it was measles, even though he said it was quite rare and he had only seen one other case in the past year. I explained that he was otherwise well and had no other symptoms of measles except for the rash and temperature but he just gave me some printed information about it and told me about the complications. He also said he would have to report it to the Public Health and they would be in touch to do some mouth swabs to confirm it.

However, yesterday morning I got up expecting the rash to have spread even more but it had started to fade and his face was almost clear. Today it has disappeared completely??

I thought a child would be quite poorly with measles? Having done a bit of research myself, I understand there is another virus called Roseola which used to be confused with measles however its main characteristic is that the temperature suddenly stops and the rash starts. His symptoms seemed to relate to this more so than measles.

Could it be Roseola? Can you get measles mildly? I am worried about his twin brother catching whatever it was. Has anyone had a similar experience?

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givenupforlent · 13/02/2005 15:17

Not personally but a friend of mine had her ds vaxed a few weeks ago and within about 10 days he had come down with all the symptoms of measles (pale skin with high coloured rash, red eyes, really miserable, slight temp but not raging, reluctance to feed etc) She took him to docs and they sent him straight to hosp as his platelets were very low. After much testing and putting him in isolation they said it was a virus and he would be contagious for about 5 days and let him home - they wouldnt say it was measles. In addition, his face became very swollen too.

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Jimjams · 13/02/2005 15:32

here's some info on roseola

Doesn't sound like measles to me- usually you have a high temp and barking cough. the way to be sure is check in the mouth for koplik's spots- but they show before the rash appears. Did the GP swab? GP's are not very good at spotting measles these days.Also there isn't that much measles around anymore so probably more likely to be roseola or a non-specific viral rash.

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nutcracker · 13/02/2005 15:45

My Dd1 had Roseola at about a year old. It was exactly as you have described. She had a high temp for about 2/3 days and then when her temp went down she came out in a rash, mainly on her trunk and face. After a few days it had completely gone and she was fine in her self all the while she had the rash.

G.p diagnosed it, and said it was quite contagious in under 2's.

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nutcracker · 13/02/2005 15:46

Sorry, there was one differnce, which was that Dd didn't have any swelling.

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Mollie2403 · 13/02/2005 16:03

Thanks for your replies so far.

Jimjams - The GP didn't swab at the time, he just said the Public Health would be in touch. I might contact him tomorrow and explain that he is now fine.

nutcracker - I think his eyelids were a bit puffy because he'd been rubbing them.

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lockets · 13/02/2005 16:13

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lockets · 13/02/2005 16:15

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Lonelymum · 13/02/2005 16:30

My ds1 (aged 8) had what I too to be roseola last summer: a high temp during which time he was quite unwell, followed by pink spots which spread from his trunk to the arms and legs. He felt better by the time the spots came out.

I don't know about measles - your ds might have a mild form - but I do know (this from an elderly doctor) that young doctors these days aren't always sure about measles and other illnesses that used to be commonplace because they don't often see them.

I would say, if your other ds catches it, he will probably be no worse than his brother. None of my other children caught the roseola (if that is what it was) from my ds1.

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Mollie2403 · 13/02/2005 18:35

Thanks again for all the replies - it's so helpful to hear from others who have had similar experiences. I felt like I was going mad(!), it doesn't help either when you feel the doctor doesn't really know for sure.

As I said, he also told me that measles was quite rare now, but is it? I must admit that I personally do not know of any cases during my lifetime (I'm in the UK) although I have read about a few. I have two older sisters who caught it in the early seventies before I was born. The eldest caught it first and the doctor actually came out to see her and just said 'oh yes, it's measles' and told my mum to put my other sister in bed with her so she could catch it and get it over with too (which she did, two weeks later). The eldest was more unwell with it than my other sister but both recovered fully. My mum said she wasn't even told about any possible complications and therefore did not worry too much when they caught it. I have never had measles and have never been vaccinated for it.

My mum seemed to have a better knowledge of it than the doctor. She did think my sons rash looked like measles but thought he would at least have had a few of the other symptoms too.

I don't know what to think about it. It did surprise me when he said it was measles although many other doctors have made me feel like it's just out there waiting for my children unless I hurry up and vaccinate.

Anyway, I'll stop waffling again!

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Lonelymum · 13/02/2005 18:38

Just an aside Mollie, but if you have not had measles and not been vaccinated against it, do you think it is worth being vaccinated yourself? I had it as a baby (60s)

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sasa15 · 13/02/2005 19:22

roseola I think is rubella...

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lockets · 13/02/2005 19:22

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sasa15 · 13/02/2005 19:26

in italy is rosolia and is rubella...that's why I found it very similar...but I'm not 100per cent sure...

Hi Lockets ....!
sort out DS poo....

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Lonelymum · 13/02/2005 19:28

No sasa, roseola is not the same as rubella. Rubella is German measles (just to add to the confusion!)

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sasa15 · 13/02/2005 19:31

ok...don't know...really...

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lockets · 13/02/2005 19:32

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ediemay · 13/02/2005 19:49

My DS had this last summer. We were in Scotland and a lovely older doctor gave me a very clear diagnosis of roseola infantum. She said that he showed all 3 symptoms - the rash, (which was fine and measles-like), slightly inflamed glands (at the sides of the neck) and a tongue which looked like a strawberry (tiny white bumps on it). He had been off colour for a week, with a high temperature and not eating well. I hope this helps.

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ediemay · 13/02/2005 19:51

Sorry, I meant to add that the only treatment she recommended was Calpol to control his temperature. She said that once the spots appear, the child is getting better.

This is completely different from rubella, which is german measles.

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piffle · 13/02/2005 19:56

my daughter had measles, she had a temp of 42 was bedridden and off food, she was 13 mths when she got it,
her rash was lots of very small little red spots spreading across chest back throat.
The doctor should have checked your sons throat as there are things called Kopliks spots which are usually still visible when the rash appears, this leads the diagnosis in the surgery, our locum doctor had never seen it before and was quite excited, she checked with a senior doc who confirmed it
THE doctor notifies public health who send you a swab kit to do at home yourself, dd's rash also left after 36 hrs, and she also had a very dry cough, she was very poorly indeed, it was very obvious there was something nasty wrong with her.
DD tested positive.
She was fine about 14 days later, but was poorly for a long time.

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lockets · 13/02/2005 19:59

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Mollie2403 · 13/02/2005 20:09

Hi Lonelymum,

To be honest, I only found out recently that I myself have never been vaccinated for measles, when researching into the whole subject. I've spent the last thirty years almost and it's never even crossed my mind about measles or if I've had the vaccine. I must have been in contact with it somewhere along the line if it was so common years ago but never caught it?

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piffle · 13/02/2005 20:27

dd always gets gunky eyes when poorly, but yes she did get conjunctivitis as well with measles, very nasty, dd was never a clingy baby at all, she just spent 23 out of 24 hrs in her cot sleeping, she did drink TONS of milk though and with expending so little energy put on a colossal amount of weight! Which for anyone who knows of dd's genetic condition and her slow weight gain will know was amazing!!!

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Mollie2403 · 13/02/2005 20:30

I'll still do the swabs if they send them to me to be sure but as he was so well throughout I don't think it was measles. The doctor didn't bother to check his mouth at the time either as he was due a nap and had fell fast asleep on my knee.

lockets & piffle - sorry to hear your daughters caught measles, how long ago was this? Are you from the UK?

Hope they are both well now.

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lockets · 13/02/2005 20:34

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JanH · 13/02/2005 20:38

DD1 had what was diagnosed as roseola aged c. 11 months. (Symptoms as described by Mollie.) She subsequently had MMR early, at 14 months; we were then living in the US and were about to move back here when she was 15 months, when it would normally have been given (this was 1983).

A week after we got back here she developed a fairly scary rash, but with no significant fever, which was diagnosed - by locum GP while staying at my Dad's house near London - as measles. (?????) She was very very spotty but really not ill.

HTH!

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