URGENT - Baby has menengitis rash again. What do I do?

[Flip]

Ds2 had his injections earlier and he has since developed a menegitis type rash. This is the second time this has happened. Do I get it checked out or not? He is really upset to which is out of character but I don't know if this is because of the injections. I'm on hold with NHS Direct now but I know they'll say A&E. I don't want to over react but he's only five months old today.

Any advice? Do I wait a little while?

i would take him straightaway-cant be too careful. hope hes ok

No advice but if I were you I'd take him straight to a&e. Theyd see him really qucickly and you'd feel much better. If it is menegitis the quicker seen the better.
Have you tried the glass trick though?

Ithink one of mine had a rash.

Oh dear Flip, erm think i would want to get it checked. Ds had the rash once, didn't fade e.t.c.
It was actually caused by dp tickling his knees to roughly. Doc thought it was quite funny.

I would get it checked though. Hope he's o.k

Take him, Flip. No over-reaction - you were so scared last time!

Message withdrawn

I'd take him to A&E to be sure.

I took ds2 to A&E shortly after my post. He wouldn't stop crying and was bright red. He was still crying when I got to the hospital and they took one look at the rash and took him straight through. The rash got worse while we were there and thankfully the doctors didn't over react and monitored him carefully. They were fairly sure it was a reaction to the immunisations but when I told them that he'd had this rash four times they were concerned. Twice before it had been seen in the hospital by doctors and documented in his notes.

We were moved up to the peadiatric observation ward and the doctor we saw was wonderful. She agreed that although he'd been very difficult to settle that inbetween times he was laughing and playing as normal so wasn't unwell. She said she didn't want to put him through the distress of taking bloods when he was well and had a history of this so she made us stay until gone midnight for observation and then I was given open access to the ward for twenty four hours.

The doctor reasured me that I wasn't being paranoid and that the rash was definitley suspicious. I told her that I'd given up on NHS direct after being on hold for ten minutes and she said that had I spoke to her she would have told me to get an ambulance.

So I'm knackered this morning having only got home just after one. But dh went to work late after taking ds1 to school. He left me and ds2 in bed so we slept in until 8.30.

He seems quite bubbly this morning but the rash is still there even though it's faded. I just have to keep an eye on him.

Hope you all feel better soon Flip and thank God it's nothing dangerous

The doctor sounds great - it makes such a difference. Did she say what to do if he gets it again?

Hope you can get some sleep today, Flip!

Flip

Just seen your post - how awful for you. I hope ds2 is ok today. You did the right thing taking him to hospital.

Hugs to you and your little one.

Janh - the doctor said that if it happened again and I was concerned like last night then I shouldn't hesitate and take him in. She also said I should take some pictures of the rash so that I can show them to the next doctor he sees. She said that if it had been during the day then the hospital would have taken pictures for his file. She said it was unusual and that it was best I used my own judgement like I'd done before because I knew my child best.