Hi we returned from vacation and our son got a fever. He said his throat was dry and it hurt to swallow. By the end of the day his nose was running and coughing. His spirits were up faster than usual too so we weren't worried. He also said it didn't hurt to swallow anymore.
I had a discomfort in my throat last Friday before he got sick that went away for almost 48 hours. Then Sunday I felt really tired with a headache for a day with a mild scratchy/raw throat more on one side. I was able to swallow crunchy foods and drink fluids without any issue. That went away within 48 hours and I eventually developed a cough and runny nose yesterday. I assumed mystery solved but I also noticed my hands were kind of flaky. Palms and between fingers. I'm really worried now that I had scarlet fever or something without realizing.
Can anyone talk me down? Our son is showing no signs of strep and kids are more prone to strep. I never had it even as a child or when living with my sister who had it a few times. I would have had to catch it for the first time as an adult and from somebody on vacation.
I was hoping to avoid the doctor because everyone only has coughs now. I hate worrying about spreading this in a clinic or catching something else. I don't understand. We are prone to covid. Can regular viruses like covid cause flaky dry hands?
The only other thing I can think of is that I was using sanitizer frequently here at home as well as more frequent hand washing. It's also not humid where we are compared to where we visited. Also moisturizing my hands seems to help it. My husband thought I was maybe drying out my hands but the timing of noticing it while sick is worrying. It's nagging at me though that it's something more and I missed the critical time to treat it. I'm more worried about our son than anything and don't know if I should just wait to see if he develops anything else. I see horror stories of kids testing positive after throwing up once or some other vague symptom.
I've always heard strep described as much more severe than what I had and I've heard people talking about feeling bad for over a week or more even after taking antibiotics. I just had a scratchy burning rawness in my throat for two days that never affected my swallowing. Mayo clinic says to be seen for a sore throat if it persists for 48 hours and it didn't. I was eating crisps on the "worst" day. My husband also told me he didn't see anything on my tonsils on Tuesday when he checked.
I worry about complications from missed strep with my son. It sounds like kids are often not treated unless they have symptoms and so far my son has nothing but a cough and runny nose. Things that are often not associated with strep.
Any advice? I thought I was going to see that flaky hands could be caused by any virus but all I see is scarlet fever and hand foot mouth. Sometimes covid but rarely.
Thank you.