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OMG..this thread gives me chills.... -
My daughter had a very mild case of strep. Not even a fever, and i heard "Oh, you dont have to really do give antibiodics, and if shes feeling better, just let it go" well, that was some of the worst advice i ever followed. A bout a week or so later, my little girl came to me and said "Mom, i just pee'd blood" well, she was so cheerful about it, I didnt think much of it, especailly since older sister had recently began her period and she said shed flushed. Well, the next morning whne she went, i decided to double check. Thank GOD that I did. The toilet literally looked like someone had dumped ketchup into it. That mild case of strep that I let go, ended up manifesting in her kidneys and attacking her internally. She was leaking blood internally...We spent the next 4months fighting to keep her blood pressure from going off the charts, from her retaining all fluids internally, had to go in every other day for blood pressure checks, heart checks, and to get her blood drawn to see if the levels of different tests were coming anywhere normal. She became anemic and missed out on almost 6weeks of school. Thank GOD we caught it soon. Because she is almost back to normal. She will have traces of blood in her urine for probably a few more years, and they are pretty sure the damage to her kidneys is minimal. (we wont know forsure without doing an invasive kidney biopsy) and no signs at this time of further heart conditions...At This Time... all because we followed someones advice that told us "tep goes away naturally most of the time"
So, we learned the hard way, MAKE SURE THE STREP IS GONE!!!! Will your kiddo be okay and not come down with this also? Probably...is it a chance you really and truly want to take???
Antibiotics only keep the infection from spreading to other parts of your body and SHORTEN the amount of time the person can spread the illness.
If he is feeling better and has no fever there is no need to give antiobiotics!
I'd keep him away from people for a couple of days to ensure he doesn't spread it to anyone.
And you are right Blue. If it is viral antibiotics won't work. That is why a test must be done like in this case.
A family member is a chiro and a primary care physician for many of his patients. He doesn't ALWAYS call for antibiotics and the patients clear it up on their own. It depends if the person has history of rheumatic fever, frequent strep throat infections, or family members with recurring strep infections. If not, many people can have it clear up. And in this kid's case it sounds like he is!
Not sure where to start here, but here goes:
1. By definition, Strep throat which has been confirmed by testing is bacterial NOT viral. Not sure where in my previous post you found me calling this viral.
2. As pointed out by maciesmom, yes, the whole point in treating strep throat is to avoid the complications that can occur if strep is left untreated leading to rheumatic fever and subsequent rheumatic heart disease.
3. A chiropractor has no business treating strep, particularly if he doesn't ALWAYS treat strep. As for the "history" of rheumatic fever, umm, see number 2 above. Rheumatic fever is CAUSED by untreated strep, if this chiropractor isn't treating strep throat correctly AND has patients with a history of rheumatic fever, maybe there is a reason for this.
4. You aren't a doctor and shouldn't be telling people NOT to take antibiotics for a condition that clearly warrants treatment.
1. By definition, Strep throat which has been confirmed by testing is bacterial NOT viral. Not sure where in my previous post you found me calling this viral.
2. As pointed out by maciesmom, yes, the whole point in treating strep throat is to avoid the complications that can occur if strep is left untreated leading to rheumatic fever and subsequent rheumatic heart disease.
3. A chiropractor has no business treating strep, particularly if he doesn't ALWAYS treat strep. As for the "history" of rheumatic fever, umm, see number 2 above. Rheumatic fever is CAUSED by untreated strep, if this chiropractor isn't treating strep throat correctly AND has patients with a history of rheumatic fever, maybe there is a reason for this.
4. You aren't a doctor and shouldn't be telling people NOT to take antibiotics for a condition that clearly warrants treatment.
If you look at my last post I DID say that FIRST you should ALWAYS talk to YOUR doctor.
I said what I might do. Her nurse said it was HER call and that sounded really silly. I advised her to take her doctor's orders
Last edited by miasmommy; 06-29-2009 at 02:46 PM..
I honestly don't know what's better - generally I am happy to follow the program and put the kids on antibiotics. But I do feel if the kid is fighting it off without, isn't that better for him in the long run?
I think you're right - I'll call the doctor this afternoon and get a direct answer.
Do the antibiotics and what bluedevilz said so completely already. Rheumatic heart and kidney disease are all possible complications to inadequately/untreated strep infections of any kind, INCLUDING impetigo. You may also have your child tested for being a carrier. It does happen and there are non-invasive ways of dealing with this - your pediatrician or even an ENT provider can help with this. "...The nurse was rather noncommittal and said it was my call. He doesn't have a fever." this needs to be reported to the provider ASAP!
You know how the med bottle always says, "Take ALL unless indicated otherwise by a doctor?" That's to prevent people from quitting taking the antibiotics because they feel better. I just had strep, and was advised to take 10 days worth of Amoxicillin. I felt better after 24 hours on the meds, but you can't just stop because you feel better. The bacteria have not been knocked out at that point! My kids, too, have run around unknowingly with strep but with no fever, but it's just not worth the risk of the horrible complications that some other posters have mentioned!
I think that some people may get confused between antibiotic-resistant staph (MRSA) and strep. They are NOT the same, and antibiotics are generally effective in killing strep. I know some people will want to argue about that, and I'm not saying that there aren't some strains that are antibiotic-resistant, but chances are that the meds would kill the strep and prevent possible complications. Plus it might come back again with a vengeance if the bacteria are not totally wiped out.
If he keeps getting this, look into having the tonsils taken out. I had MANY bad cases of strep when I was 18-19 (including one where my mother had to drive 4 hours to get me at college and take me to a hospital because I was SO sick...I think that was the sickest I have ever been.). I eventually had my tonsils out and never had strep again (15+ years ago).
If he keeps getting this, look into having the tonsils taken out. I had MANY bad cases of strep when I was 18-19 (including one where my mother had to drive 4 hours to get me at college and take me to a hospital because I was SO sick...I think that was the sickest I have ever been.). I eventually had my tonsils out and never had strep again (15+ years ago).
I asked my doctor about this since my daughter has gotten strep a ton of times. She said that the current "recommendation" for removing tonsils is 4 positive strep tests in 6 months. Good for you OP for taking antibiotics. I don't like taking tons of antibiotics, but for something like strep, it's necessary
I woudn't give the antibiotics... I probably wouldn't have taken him to the doctor for a sore throat with no other symptoms anyway, so if it resolved itself, it would not occur to me to think that he might need to be tested for strep. He might also simply be a carrier of strep, which does not necessitate antibiotics.
Have son tested as strep throat carrier - "Ask the Doctor" (http://www.healthcaresouth.com/pages/askthedoctor/strep.htm - broken link)
Quote:
Not everyone should be tested for strep. Your healthcare provider can best determine who needs testing. 10-20% of school age children carry strep bacteria in their throats for several months without any infection. Testing everyone with a sore throat would lead to many “false positives” and many receiving unnecessary treatment.
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