3 yr old very sick with chicken pox

[sarahbarah]

hi just wondering as chicken pox presents so variedly in different children, my DD has broken out since wed increasingly worse covered with spots but some scabbing over now , but on friday pm she developed temp and got crankier , now it sunday still hot and cranky, she was awake alot last night and is flaked out today, literally sleeping all day except when disturbed and then she just cries and says im not well, her temp is 39 and her face particularly around eyes is swollen (maybe blocked tear ducts but looks like a different chld)i am concerned that there is more than pox here as there has been cases of severe complications, its sunday so no gp and if i bring a chicken pox to a and e they probably hunt us out saying it is just chicken pox and tell me off for spreading it, am i being too pessimistic sorry if so, just want to know if any of yours were as sick as this, my last 2 kids got spots but were nothing as sick as this

Id ring out of hours or NHS direct and see what they say, it does sound particularly bad, poor thing

Call out of hours gp for advice. Trust your instincts and get her seen
.

i have called still waiting for reply, she should be getting better rather than worsening, hence the question if others were like this, thanks will see what they say

Is it NHS direct you have called and are waiting a reply from?

If you are still waiting (and I hope not) then call your GPs usual number. There is usually a message with a number to call out of hours. You can call them and they usually get a Dr to call you back. If need be the OOH Dr can do home visits in certain circumstances - you could be one of these cases, if they dont want you taking a contagious child to a hospital/clinic. At the very least, the OOH Dr will be able to advise you over the phone and may be quicker than NHS direct.

Hope you get some advice soon.

My DS had a very bad case of CP last summer, I do empathise. Worst week of my life (including the week of his ASD diagnosis). Eventually we were prescribed zovirax liquid, which seemed to help, but honestly I don't know whether the virus itself was waning IYKWIM. This was about day 5 I think, he had them on the rims of his eyes, and must have had them down his throat as he was gagging.

Are you giving her zirtec and phenergan? I think the zirtec did help a bit, as did oatmeal/bicarb baths.

All the best to you both, hope you lo starts to turn the corner soon

I would phone the out of hours emergency dr number - if you phone your normal number it will either redirect or give you instructions. Really hope your little one is OK

Meant to add, DS1 had them first, had maybe 10 spots and very few other side effects. DS2 was totally destroyed. So same strain of pox had completely different effects.

Have you given her any pirotin? In cases of bad pox they get them internally as well as externally.

Hope she perks up.

We called the out of hours doc when my dd had chicken pox-she wasn't as ill as yours sounds,but she was screaming in pain (she was 11m).The doc came out quite quickly to see her.Hopefully yours will get seen promptly too,it does sound particularly nasty.Hope she is on the mend soon.

I have known two (usually very healthy) DC need to be hostpitalised with chickenpox. What did NHS direct say?

My DD was very bad with CP. Phoned GP and mentioned there was one on her eyeball and they told me to take her straight up. They prescriped the zovirax liquid, and she was feeling better within a few hours. She also had them in her mouth and vagina, which burst and were agony for her. Hope they sort your DD out quickly

you could take her to a&e if you have someone to go with you, they could go in first and explain and maybe she could be taken straight to a room so she doesn't pass it on to anyone else?

or call your local a&e and ask if you can bring her in?

Hi OP, how is your dd? Hope she has improved

How are things today?

My DS1 was really very ill with chicken pox - he pretty much didn't move from an armchair in the living room for a week - just sat looking like a shrivelled old man :( and I was quite concerned. He had lots of spots, hardly ate and although he drank lots his breath smelt totally toxic all week. His brother - by contrast - went down with it first, had about 20 spots and apart from one 'off-colour' day was bright and jolly throughout.

If you are worried, do call your GP surgery and ask for their advice. If they are concerned, they will make an appointment available to see her. Hope things get better soon. MPD

hi thank you all was not able to come on here till now, waited on nhs direct who sent her to out of hours gp at local hosp. he said she had a throat infection on top of pox , and she is on augmentin now, today she seems better, but having read some of your stories i think she been lucky, he didnt admit her or mention any thing about zovirax as her temp was 40C and said it probably a bacterial infection as well hence the augmentin, so thank you all, This CP is an awful thing x

Glad she's on the mend. Hope she's up and about soon xxx

BTW, my DS was ruined with spots, I thought he would be left with lots of scarring - cant find a single one now!

Any medical professional who tells me CP is a mild illness would want to stand well back and duck, it can be really distressing when they are going through it.

All the best

Is she alright now? I do hope so. If you have any doubts at all please take her back to hospital (they will keep her out of the way of others if you warn them). I don't want to scare you but I ask this because the swollen face thing sounds exactly like my daughter. About 4 days after her spots appeared her lips and eyes were so swollen that she was almost unrecognisable, at the same time her temperature spiked, she was horrendously ill. As it was the weekend we went in twice to the out of hours clinic and were sent home (with everyone getting cross about the infection risk) they proscribed her oral antibiotics but she continued to deteriorate and then once Monday came I took her to the GP who proscribed stronger antibiotics. By the Wednesday (i.e. approx 8 days after her first spots) I took her back to the GP who said she had to be admitted to hospital then and there - called the hospital to prepare them for our arrival and she was then in hospital for 8 days on IV antibiotics, and terribly ill and still very ill and on oral antibiotics for weeks after her release.

She had contracted Staphylococcus aureus in her spots which was what caused the problems.