BABY - HOSPITAL OR NOT?

[huggybear]

hi,

i posted last night about my babys chicken pox and was very greatful for all the advice i recieved.

however

today he hasnt eaten, or drunk much. his nappy was wet on waking up but not since. he's been sweating alot though and has had a temp. hes extremly clingy and listless ie - just lies there in his cot whinging.

he has been having calpol, piriton and i have tried some of the suggestions from mn with his spots (which have worked btw thanks) so i dont think they are bothering him atm

he's asleep right now. he's 14 months old.

do you think this is just a really bad case of chicken pox or should i take him to the hospital?

thanks

[WigWamBam]

Do you have an out-of-hours GP service you could call for advice? Or ring NHS Direct and see what they say.

[HunkerMunker]

I would ring NHS Direct, I think. Poor baby

[huggybear]

i'll ring nhs direct now.

[throckenholt]

ring nhs direct or maybe think of casualty - he may be getting dehydrated and need a drip for a while.

[sunchowder]

Be has agressive as you can, you need to be assured. As long as he is drinking, I would be comforted by that. But you can't be sure and I certainly am not a doctor. When their nappys are dry for more than several hours I would just get so nervous myself. I hope he gets better soon Huggy.

[sparklymieow]

DD2 was like this, I did take her to GP and was told to keep an eye on her. I would see a doctor if you are worried

[tamum]

There are complications of chickenpox which are rare, but need to be checked out. My dd had encephalitis (she's fine now, I hasten to add). Please take him to hospital.

[PrincessPeaHead]

how high is his temp? If it is consistently above 39 and calpol isn't really doing much, I would phone your out of hours gp./ TBH I would avoid hospital if you can - for a start they really don't want a contagious poxy child there and secondly I wouldn't be happy about taking my child with lots of open poxes there with so much mrsa about. Only if the fever is scary OR if you think he is getting wheezy or rattly in the chest would I go (chest infection can set in as a secondary in a bad case of chicken pox, and that needs to be treated pronto). Otherwise there isn't anything else that they can do there that you can't do at home. Just manage the fever and keep pushing fluids.

Good luck. If it is any consolation when my 5mth old had awful pox, the night that we were preparing for going to hospital was the breaking point of the fever - it got much better from then on and he was basically fine 24-36 hrs later. Courage, as the french say!

[huggybear]

just spoke to nhs direct and they're going to ring me back in an hour or so (although last time they said that it was 6 hours - 1am (angry) )

thanks xx

[angelcakeumm]

I would take him to hospital, better to be safe than sorry i believe.

[Twiglett]

Call the A&E department of your local hospital and ask them

personally I think I'd take him just to reassure yourself

both my 2 have just gone through CP and you wouldn't have known it apart from the spots .. DD who was 11 months had no fever at all and just acted normally

you can get Chicken pox anywhere including internally and if he's not drinking nor wet nappies it is worth taking him.. but I would call first and warn them as he'll be infectious and they may have a side room you can use

[Weatherwax]

I'd get the hospital to check him out as it sounds as if he might be getting dehydrated.

[potty1]

Huggy - I'd certainly get him checked out. My dd's CP got infected (on her bum) and she ended up on anti-b's and as PPH says it can cause a secondary chest infection.

[KBear]

can't you call your doc to look at him? Isn't there an out of hours service? I think if he's not drinking and you are worried you should have him seen. NHS direct will only say call your doctor.

Are you worried they will think you are over-reacting? Follow your mothers instinct, it never fails. If you think he can wait out the night do so but if not, call.

Let us know how he gets on.

x

[huggybear]

they just phoned me back. she said that she was concerned about him being dehydrated, am sleeping alot is a symptom of this. she weighed up the risks of taking him to hospital, as PPH said, he could catch stuff through his spots. advised that i keep him doped up and give him loads to drink. but said to keep an eye on his breathing - which is fine atm. and to phone gp in the morning

[PrincessPeaHead]

oh good Im glad they came back to you so quickly. I think he is better at home as long as there isn't anything very specific you are worried about. a lukewarm (not cool) bath might make him a bit more comfortable, lower his fever a bit and perk him up enough to drink some more fluids. also you could give him a flannel to chew in there (if yours is as chewy as mine!) - good way of sneaking in some fluids...

[PrincessPeaHead]

how is he today huggybear?