Slapped Cheek/Parvovirus - Waiting for BT Results :-(

[emmanumber3]

Hi! I'm currently 27+1 along with my DD and, yesterday, it became obvious that DS1 (13) has Slapped Cheek Syndrome - he's not feeling ill at all but, having seen the cheek & body rash on several other children before, it is quite unmistakable .

I've been to see the Dr this morning, who has given me a BT to check whether I am immune to the virus or not. I now have a few days to wait until the results come back. Am obviously panicking like mad as the Parvovirus which causes Slapped Cheek can cause stillbirth/miscarriage if passed on to an unborn baby .

My reason for posting really is to ask whether anyone else has had to have this BT and, if so, what was the outcome? Does anyone know what happens if the BT results show that I do have parvovirus? (The Dr said she would refer me straight to the maternity unit if that happened so she wasn't quite sure what they would do with me when I got there). .

I had blood tests done when I was about 5 months pregnant with my 2nd child. I had come into contact with a child with parvo and I developed the symptoms - headaches continually for about 3 weeks and very distinctive rash on cheeks (but no where else) being the main ones.

I went to see my gp who took one look at me, and without me even telling her I'd been in contact with parvo, told me she was 99% sure I had it! I had the first BT which showed I did not have immunity to it. (i.e. I hadn't had it as a child) I then had to go back a week later to have a 2nd test to see if I had contracted it. That test came back negative, but apparently the virus can take a while to show up in the blood so I was called back a week later for a 3rd test. The 3rd test also came back negative, but as I was displaying all the symptoms and had been in contact they called me back for 1 final test a month after I had first been to the gps. That test came back negative as well and I got the all-clear.

To this day I have no idea what I had, but tests seem to show pretty conclusively that it wasn't parvo.

For the 1st 2 weeks I was asked by my gp to quarentine myself and my son (age 2 at the time) as I could have risked infecting other people, including other pregnant friends. Once I had got the 2nd set of test back clear I was told I could go out again, but still to be cautious until we knew for certain I was OK.

My gp was great at explaining it all to me so that I had all the relevant facts. Parvo can cause something called fetal hydrops (sp?) in the baby, which can then lead to anemia. This can, in turn, lead to heart failure and miscarriage. It is pretty rare and definitely avoidable. If my tests had come back positive I would have been referred to the matty for fortnightly scans for 10 weeks. If any signs of fetal hydrops were detected in these scans they they would have done some kind of intra-uterine injection to protect the baby. This is where my knowledge gets a bit fuzzy as it was 4 years ago and obviously I never needed it, so i can't give you any more details I'm afraid.

What I do know is that it is scary, and that there's not much support as it's not a widely known risk among the general public (not like rubella) so most people I spoke to had never even heard of it! BUT it is definitely preventable and the hospitals giving you regular scans and monitoring should protect you and the baby.

It's hard not to worry - I know! - but the gp is hopefully on top of it and should have systems in place to deal with any risk.

Try not to worry too much. The high risk period for parvovirus is actually 9-22 weeks. If your tests come back positive for the recent parvo infection you will likely be referred onto the obstetric team and they might do a scan to keep an eye on baby that way.

Also the majority of the population is actually immune to parvovirus (even if you do not remember having it as a child).

Thank you for your replies. You have put my mind at rest at least a little bit . Will try not to worry & see what the BT results say in a few days time (easier said than done obviously ). I am booked in for a 30 week scan in a couple of weeks anyway as DS2 was "a bit on the small side" according to the weight charts they've plotted for me (he was 7lbs 7oz - not sure how big they would have liked him to be ). Therefore, they want to keep a closer eye on the growth of DD.

Thank you again for your help .

I had the blood test at 20wks preg with my 2nd child, my DS had caught it at nursery & there was no question of me being able to quarantine myself from him. I grilled my mum over and over to try and find out whether she remembered me ever having had slapped cheek as a child.... she just couldn't remember. The test came back that I was immune due to a previous infection....as rumnoraisinsplease says, I was told by my GP that the majority of people will have had parvovirus as a child and therefore will have immunity, so try not to worry. But I do know how agonising it is waiting for results... think mine were back within a day or 2 (chase your surgery....sometimes they forget to tell you if all is fine, but you're left waiting & wondering!).

Thanks. My mum is actually a Receptionist at our Dr's surgery so I will be asking her later to keep a look out for the results coming back .

I had the blood test at 7 weeks when DD got slapped cheek. It was a very worrying time, but luckily I was already immune - as most people are apparently. I was told the worrying time was between about 9 and 17 weeks, so hopefully even if you aren't immune, you will be well out of the danger period.

My doctor was lovely - phoned me as soon as the results came back. But it sounds like you've already got your spies on the case.