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Children's health

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Original poster

DS is still sick and I am not sure I agree with GP - your experience please?

26 replies

hereidrawtheline · 15/05/2009 11:59

Sunday night DS came down with a high fever - spent the whole night talking in his sleep and waking crying. Monday I took him to the GP as his fever was 39.8. GP said it was a virus and would get better and worse and we had to wait it out. Since then his fever has gone down to normal, then back up to around 38 & back & forth.

Last night he woke in the night many times because he had a bad chesty cough. This lasted into today. His voice was coming & going and he was coughing a lot.

I listened to his chest with our stethescope - I am not a doctor!! But we play doctor together all the time so I thought well I might notice if there is some sound in his chest that isnt normally there. On the right side of his back I heard a quite loud popping or tapping noise 4 times before I stopped listening.

I took him to the GP - waited 45 mins to be seen, then GP listened to his chest & didnt hear anything. He has some swollen lymph glands in his neck. GP was in a big rush because of so many urgent appointments and I really felt he was trying to hurry us on. Anyway he said it is just a virus and we have to get through it. He said it could be laryngitis as his voice is sometimes coming & going, but it was not tonsilitis.

I am just worried because of course DS is coughing the whole way home, and then this is the really weird thing, he actually fell asleep in the buggy on the way home, and if you knew DS you would know how shocking that is. I dont think he has slept in his buggy since he was about 8 months. (He is 2.9)

While with the GP DS just kept saying "I want to go home, I'm hot and tired" and whining "I'm tired"

Another reason I worry is that several months back I had pneumonia. I saw the GP earlier in that day (the different one in the same practice of 2) and she said my chest was fine then within 6 hours I was in A&E with pneumonia on a nebuliser. So I am worried. What would you think?

OP posts:
Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 15/05/2009 12:08

bump

OP posts:
listenglisten · 15/05/2009 12:16

I don't really have mich advice but just to say my dd was a bit like this last week. She'd had a chesty cough for a while, and had a temperature with it. Then after a couple of days her temp was right up again, she fell asleep in the afternoon (very unlike her) then fell asleep instantly at bedtime (again, quite unusual!)

She had a really restless night, talking etc and hot until the morning. Seemed fine the next day.

I would take back to the GP and try and see someone else if it doesn't improve.

Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 15/05/2009 12:32

thank you for letting me know

There are no more GPs I can see at my surgery so I think I will leave it and if he gets any worse or even just no better take him tomorrow to an out of hours one.

OP posts:
OhYouBadBadKitten · 15/05/2009 12:50

hereidraw, if you aren't happy still this evening and all your instincts are saying that you really aren't happy, then I'd take him to out of hours in the evening. Theres nothing worse than having a poorly child in the middle of the night - it always seems much worse then!

FabulousBakerGirl · 15/05/2009 12:52

I would see someone else.

labyrinthine · 15/05/2009 12:54

herei~thats a fair plan.
Its difficult to hear much in childrens chests sometimes and if he is no better,still swinging temp,go to OOH tomorrow or as you need.

Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 15/05/2009 16:02

thanks. I just called nhs direct as there has been all day today, all over my bedding where he is sleeping, a really strong sweet smell. It is just so noticeable, and its coming from him, from his body. When you put your nose in his hair its so strong. They said this is normal with children with fevers sometimes, have you found that?

OP posts:
OhYouBadBadKitten · 15/05/2009 16:49

I can always smell when dd has a fever as soon as I walk in the room.

SusieDerkins · 15/05/2009 16:53

Ds1 always smells "odd" when he's ill. I can smell it before the illness has come out iykwim.

Hulababy · 15/05/2009 16:55

Both DH and myself have always commented on the smell thing. If DD is poorly she smells poorly too.

It really could be just a virus, they can be nasty things. I have a horrid cold virus at the moment. Have has moments of high temperatures, then normal, have a bad cough and sore throat, and a sore nose now too from blowing. Yesterday I was very tired with it and nodded off in the early evening for a bit! I am starting to feel a bit better again today. And this all comes just a week after having antib for a throat infection.

A lot of the children in the class I work in have had some nasty cold viruses this past couple of weeks, some at school and some kept at home.

Elibean · 15/05/2009 17:07

I can smell a fever on both dds, sometimes even before it shows on the thermometer, strangely.

Trust yourself, if he seems worse or no better, go to whatever doctor you can get to at that time - its very possible to miss the start of a chest infection, but equally possible he'll pull out of it on his own! Hope he's better v soon, either way

smudgethepuppydog · 15/05/2009 18:01

DH used to laugh at me for being able to smell when the kids were going to be ill but I could.

Trust your instincts, if you think there's something more going on then go to out of hours over the weekend.

DoNotAnnoy · 15/05/2009 18:37

I think that if they have a fever they tend to sweat more....and it is sweat that you smell.

WRT the OP I don't think the GPs diagnosis is particularly unreasonable. IME Viruses tend to cause a bigger temp spike. If his chest is clear - as described by teh Dr then he does not have a chest infection. If he had a chest infection you would hav noticed a clear difference throughout your chest listening - it isn't just a few taps - although i can't explain what they are.

Everything sounds to me like he has a virus. He obviously needs monitoring to make sure he doesn't get a secondary bacterial infection. Other than that keep him comfortable with temp control (ibuprofen, paracetamol, cool clothes...) and just monitor him.

Obviously though if you are genuinely worried you should seek a second opinion.

Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 15/05/2009 19:39

well DH cant smell it but for me I cant smell anything else!

OP posts:
angel1976 · 15/05/2009 20:31

If you are really worried, I would take him to the A&E if he doesn't get any better. My DS fell ill last Tuesday and gradually stopped eating and almost drinking. I wasn't worried at first. He seemed like he had a virus - high temps (but controlled by Calpol), very snotty etc and I was ill as well so it sounded like we had the same thing. He was very happy when awake though. On Saturday, he took a turn for the worse. He woke up at 9am (unheard of since he was a baby and he's almost 15 months now), fell asleep on the sofa with me at 11am (again, like your DS, unheard of as he usually only sleeps in the cot in his room), we took him out for some fresh air and he fell asleep on the way home in the car at 2pm! He was also very grizzly when awake.

I just cried and cried on the way home as I 'knew' something was wrong with him. NHS Direct put me through to our local emergency GP who basically told me to take him to A&E where they diagnosed him with a chest infection (they think it started as a viral infection). They gave him antibiotics and within 24 hours, he was 10x better! So don't hesitate to take your DS to A&E if he really is not himself. It could be a virus but it could be something more... Hope he's okay!

Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 15/05/2009 20:46

thank you I am really glad your DS is better now!

I will take him to A&E or OoH doctor if he worsens. It was so strange he woke from his nap at 2 and lay in bed with me til 6! He did not want to get up. We just cuddled and talked and read and looked at stuff on the laptop. He is going to be now, coughing.

OP posts:
OhYouBadBadKitten · 16/05/2009 08:33

How is he this morning?

Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 16/05/2009 11:08

thanks for asking He had a terrible night, in my bed but kept crying and coughing and rolling around trying to get comfortable. Now he is happily pottering about in the garden but he went through an hour of being in the foulest mood you could imagine. But it was so obvious he felt miserable. After he gets some fresh air I am going to put him down for a nap. Still coughing etc. Still smelling sweet. Also I think last night sometime in the middle of the night when I was cuddling him I had a brainwave, the sweet smell is like his amniotic fluid, the waters that leaked relentlessly. (I had PROM) that is what it reminded me of.

OP posts:
angel1976 · 16/05/2009 23:53

Is he eating normally? Does he still have a temp? If you think he is getting worse, he really should go to A&E even if to just get checked out. The GP told me that if DS wasn't getting any better after we left A&E, I was told to come back. He said to trust my instinct and not to wait 24/48 hours. I really hope that whatever he has got, he starts getting better soon. I am not a big fan of ABs, DS has been prescribed it in the past and I haven't given it to him as I believe they have to build up their own immunity but with this latest bout of illness, I am glad he took the ABs as they made a huge difference...

Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 17/05/2009 09:02

he is a bit better, yes! His temp has gone down and he is eating a little bit. I am still worried about the cough. Thanks for asking after him.

OP posts:
Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 17/05/2009 21:22

he has been off and on seeming fine, then in a foul mood, hurting all over, crying constantly and just miserable. Then wouldnt take calpol because he said it was salty so I got him to take nurofen, then took him to out of hours doctor, by which time he was back to normal! he is now in bed and I am no wiser with what is going on!

OP posts:
plusonemore · 17/05/2009 21:51

sounds a bit flu-ey to me? (not trying to imply swine flu tough!!!) you know, the achey, cant get comfy, talking nonsense, feeling miserable kind of feeling? Poor poppet

angel1976 · 17/05/2009 21:53

Oh, poor thing! I hope he feels better soon...

lisad123 · 17/05/2009 23:02

trust your feelings. I took DD2 back 3 times to A&E and was told first 2 times was bronchelisit, but sats a little low, 3rd time they were ready to send us home when nurse noted her sats had been dropping to 83% during the night and bingo, x ray and pnemonia Spent a week in hospital. Glad i trusted my mums alerts

Original poster
hereidrawtheline · 18/05/2009 09:10

the out of hours doctor said the right side of his lungs was laboured breathing but not a crackle so nothing bacterial. DH and I are both sick today.

OP posts:
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