Anyone have any experience of measles?

[iloveblue]

Hello

DS2 (aged 4) came out in a horrid rash this afternoon (I was at work). He was at DS1's school play with DH and MIL. They popped into Boots round the corner to ask the pharmacist who said - it looks like measles, get him straight to the docs.
So DH took him straight to GP surgery where they were put in isolation room.

It then took 6 doctors and a nurse to diagnose measles. Apparently DH said they were googling it on laptop at one point!
They said it is very rare nowadays due to the MMR jab (which DS had) and the GP hadn't seen a case for 20 yrs.

DS2 has to stay inside for 4 days as it is very contagious - and they are sending us a swab kit to do and send off to diagnose formally.

He doesn't seem to bad - he's just over a bad case of tonsilitis, but is absolutely covered in spots.

Has anyone experienced this with their DC?
How long will rash last for?

Thankyou

I was unwell as a small child and considered too fragile for the measles' jab. As a result I caught it. (Possibly flawed reasoning there?!). This would have been about 1984 I think. Very unpleasant, but it sounds as if your little boy got off fairly lightly. Do keep a record of the dates of the illness as if he ever wants to live abroad he may need a verified record. I had real problems when I moved to the States for a year as they wouldn't accept having actually had both measles and chicken pox (rather than jabs) as evidence of immunity without considerable medical documentation!

iloveblue: he might have picked it up at nursery, the incubation period is 10-14 days.

Penicillin allergy - interesting.

Does he have a temperature?

I developed sensitivity to amoxicilin and related abs after years of bring able to take them without any problems. At first my rash would appear long after I had finished the abs, then towards the end of the course, eventually I would react within 24h. At which point we finally realised that I was allergic. I was never in any other way ill with the rash.

He did have a temperature - but that was before the rash developed really.
Did your rash look like a measles type rash?

I couldnt remember, so I've just googles images of measles rash and penicillin rash.

I used to get the spotty rash reaction (ie not the flat, itchy hives), and, yes, they do look quite similar to measles rash.

I hope you get the results of the swab soon!

Just wanted to add an update.
I rang our GP surgery to find out about DS's swab results and apparently it probably wasn't measles.
My Gp expalined that they look for two types of antibodies - one shows that there has been an infection or vaccination at some point in the past and one shows there is a current infection. They only found the first type - which as DS had the MMR was related to that.

GP has suggested it was probably a viral rash related to the tonsilitis he had just had. I asked about a possible allergic reaction to penicillin and he said it didn't look like an allergic rash (he was one of the 6 docs who examined him in the surgery) and there would usually be other symptoms of allergy alongside it. Plus the
fact that he'd had Amoxycillin in the past with no problems.

I still think I might ask for an alternative if he is prescribed Amoxycillin again in the future.

Hi I no its late but did anyone child ever have a temperature 9days after having the mmr as my daughter did and we took her to the doctor said just give her paracetamol so we did. All night we where up with her and about 6am she feel asleep well so we thought we went and check on her at 8am and found she was lifeless in her cot. Once she was in hospital they had to put her in to a coma as she wouldn't stop fitting. She was in hospital for over 2weeks and we told them about the mmr and no one wanted to no and keep saying she had a viral infection but we new it wasn't when anyway she had 24hr to live and then it was 48 then they said they don't no :-( but she come out off it and was left brain died on her left side and has right sided hemiplegia and other half problem's has anyone else had to face the diversity of three mmr and if so please let me no as I feel there is no one to talk to thank you