Cellulitis in an 11 yr old ?

[newlifemom]

My dd is taking antibiotics for cellulitis. This is the third time in her life she has had it. The first time, she was three and said her foot hurt and I thought maybe she had twisted it weird or something. Nope. Cellulitis. She went on oral anitbiotics and was fine. The second time, she picked up a huge splinter in her foot. [it took two of us to hold her down, while my friend got it out. She was 9. :eek:] Anyway, the next day she was complaining about it and [of course this was a Sunday night. :glare:] I looked at it and saw red streaky lines coming out from the wound site up onto the top of her foot. That required a 24 hr hospital stay and 3 rounds of IV antibiotics.

 

Which brings us to two Thursdays ago. She was stung by a bee on top of her foot. No biggie. Put some ice on it, gave her a benadryl and called it good. The Wednesday afterward, that is 7 days later, she told me that she thought she had a mosquito bite on top of the bee sting. I didn't think anything of it. [oops] It was a little red and a little swollen, slightly larger than a quarter. I gave her another benadryl and sent her to bed. The next day I left early for a conference and was gone until 6pm. She told me then that it hurt and itched much worse and she was sure it was a lot more swollen. I had her shower [dirty] so I could look at the foot better. Thus it wasn't until 7:15 that I say it. Holy size of an elephant, Batman! Off to urgent care.

 

I gave all that background b/c we are going to the dr in an hour b/c there is a hard bump at the wound site and it still hurts her. Plus, I think that this is not normal for a child. I am going to be asking questions about immune systems and auto-immune disorders.

 

Is there anything else I should be asking the dr? She does take vitamins and probiotics. [increased probiotics right now]

 

What say you?

[Jean in Newcastle]

I am prone to cellulitis. I now put tea-tree oil on any wound or sting.

[mrs.m]

The foot is a bad place to get a wound because it touches the ground and is exposed to bad bacteria all the time. It doesn't really mean that she has an auto-immune disorder. And unless she has some other signs, I would look at like it's incidental infections and the dr. will too. It's also possible that she is just having an allergic reaction to the bee sting. Without seeing it, it's hard to tell.

[newlifemom]

Well I don't think it was an allergic reaction, as it didn't swell til nearly a week later. She is much better and the dr agreed with you that she doesn't have any other factors and to always clean any wounds with soap and water, no matter how small. It just seems weird to me.

[Mommyof4ks]

You might try putting peroxide on every cut or sting or soak her foot in epsom salt. I used to get infections on my foot, but I have no idea what they are or why, every time I got a cut on a foot for years. Peroxide and epsom salt have kept me infection free for a couple of years.

[RhondaJK]

[quote name=newlifemom;192243

 

I gave all that background b/c we are going to the dr in an hour b/c there is a hard bump at the wound site and it still hurts her. Plus' date=' I think that this is not normal for a child. I am going to be asking questions about immune systems and auto-immune disorders.

 

Is there anything else I should be asking the dr? She does take vitamins and probiotics. [increased probiotics right now]

 

What say you?

 

I would ask the Dr about MRSA, it's a type of staph bacteria that is antibiotic resistant and can be present and carried by people who are not ill. They usually have to culture the wound to confirm the diagnosis. It is treatable with specific antibiotics but doesn't respond well to all of them.

[SamuraiMom]

My daughter was VERY prone to celluitis until she hit her teens. We never did find a cause. She'd get a sticker in her foot and be on crutches and antibiotics! Same with insect bites, animal bites, any small wound would end up sending up to the ER!

 

I have five kids and she is the ONLY one who had this issue.

 

There was some blood work done to rule out Diabetes and a few other issues, but no cause was ever found.

 

Tara B

[DianeW88]

Some kids are just prone to it. In the peds practice I worked in, those kids were ALWAYS put on antibiotics whenever they had a injury that broke the skin on their feet, hands or face. She'll most likely outgrow the tendency to develop cellulitis as she ages. Good luck!!

 

Diane W.

married for 22 years

homeschooling 3 kiddos for 16 years