Should I take my child back to the doctor....again?

[Michelle O. in MO]

I feel a little silly asking this, but my 11yod has been sick for the past 4 weeks and she's not getting better. She appears to have a severe cold that doesn't seem to want to end or even improve. She has the stuffy/runny nose and congestion, an awful cough that for awhile was very loose (now it's dry and sounds painful), red/sore throat, chills, and stomach ache all come and go. She's had a low grade fever that also comes and goes. Swollen lymph glands. Of course she's exhausted. She hasn't been sick enough to stay put in bed all day, but clearly she's not well enough to have a normal active day either.

 

I've taken her to the pediatrician twice. Both times he said her lungs were clear and well, it might be a sinus infection or walking pneumonia. But symptoms weren't severe enough to indicate that for sure. The last time I took her to see him was 10 days ago. She stopped eating today.

 

I've also had a humidifier in her room for the past two weeks, gave her sudafed non-drowsy but that still kept her awake past midnight. Somebody please give me an opinion. How long should i ride this out? Should I take her back to the ped? FYI - she came down with pneumonia two years ago, so I really hate watching this drag out. The angel-girl wants to start up with her swim team again in January and I'd really like to see her back to her old self.

[Catwoman]

I would absolutely take her back to the doctor, and if he's not helpful, I'd take her to another doctor.

 

I hope she gets better soon! :grouphug:

 

Cat

[lmrich]

Take her back and write down everything that has been going so you don't forget to tell him/her something.

Best of luck!

[Harriet Vane]

I would absolutely take her back to the doctor, and if he's not helpful, I'd take her to another doctor.

 

I hope she gets better soon! :grouphug:

 

Cat

 

:iagree:

[Pippen]

I'd take her to Promptcare and get the opinion of a different doctor.

[QueenCat]

I'd go now, before Christmas.

[tonersl]

Definitely take her back. Has she been tested for strep? Some of her symptoms are classic strep symptoms. 4 weeks is way too long for this to be going on.

 

Shannon in NC

[catholicmommy]

I feel a little silly asking this, but my 11yod has been sick for the past 4 weeks and she's not getting better. She appears to have a severe cold that doesn't seem to want to end or even improve. She has the stuffy/runny nose and congestion, an awful cough that for awhile was very loose (now it's dry and sounds painful), red/sore throat, chills, and stomach ache all come and go. She's had a low grade fever that also comes and goes. Swollen lymph glands. Of course she's exhausted. She hasn't been sick enough to stay put in bed all day, but clearly she's not well enough to have a normal active day either.

 

 

awww! poor girl!!

 

There is this awful cold going around where we live that the doctors have dubbed the 'hundred day cough'. Sometimes those coughs can linger for a long long time. For us, this also came with fatigue.

 

A tummy ache can be caused by swallowing too much mucus if it's draining down the back of her throat, which can also cause a sore throat.

 

One thing you might want to get her checked for is strep. In kids, strep can cause tummy aches as well as a sore throat, and it can linger for a long time and also cause a dry cough because her throat is irritated. if it's strep, you could look for any funny rashes on her chest, or face, which sometimes comes with it (or any achey muscles).

 

I hate this whole season of colds/flu. It seems like once we get a cold in the family we can't get rid of the germs for a month or more sometimes. I hope she feels better soon. Is anyone else in the family sick? Do they have the same symptoms?

[Michelle O. in MO]

OK...thank you ladies. I guess I started second-guessing myself after the second visit to the ped. I was convinced at that point something needed to be done and was a little surprised when he didn't agree. He did offer to give her a script for antibiotics (and in hindsight I should have accepted), but I didn't see the point yet if he couldn't definitively determine what was wrong. He just felt it was a bad cold.

 

Thank you again and Merry Christmas everyone. :001_smile:

 

Michelle

[DianeW88]

Did the doctor test her for mono?

[Michelle O. in MO]

Did the doctor test her for mono?

 

No, he didn't check her for mono or strep. This time I'll be sure to ask. I'm determined not to leave without some type of proactive effort on his part.

[MamaAkins]

I would have her tested for strep and mono. Even if those are both negative, it definitely sounds as if she has a sinus infection that needs antibiotics to clear up! Praying that your little girl is feeling better soon! That is much too long to be that sick!

[athena1277]

I would take her back in hopes that she will feel a little better before Christmas and won't need an ER visit because the doc has the holiday off.

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

I would absolutely take her back to the doctor, and if he's not helpful, I'd take her to another doctor.

 

I hope she gets better soon! :grouphug:

 

Cat

 

:iagree: I would not wait to take her. If she cannot be seen today I would consider the ER. Did he prescribe antibiotics?

[Merry]

...

[nelewaf]

:iagree: Take her back tomorrow, and don't let them schedule a late afternoon appt. (Late morn. or early afternoon).

 

Must ask for strep and/or bloodwork tests. Ask, ask ,ask, and take notes if there is anything else this could be? Any other kids in last month w/ these symptoms? Is there another doc in the practice to see? If so, insist on seeing the doc w/ the most experience. (owner or senior doc)

[AnitaMcC]

I would take her back and ask for tests.

 

My Dd was having sore throat (swollen lymph glands) and high fever that lasted 2-3 days, then a cough for a few weeks. We didn't think much about the cough since she has asthma. We just treated her for a virus and the asthma symptoms.

 

She would appear to be recovered and then 2 weeks later she would be sick again. Same symptoms. 2-3 day fever/sore throat, a mild cough for a few weeks. Then it would seem to be gone for a few weeks. She appeared recovered again, but just a bit tired. We just figured she wasn't sleeping well due to the asthma.

 

And then it happened a third time. Finally this time I took her to doctor. They did a throat culture and it was negative for strep. But thankfully the doctor had a gut feeling and did a culture on Dd's blood. DD had strep in her blood.

 

Apparently she had probably had strep throat (at least the first time) but her immune system fought it off just enough to put it in remission. But then it came back after an incubation period.

 

Dd had to go on two antibiotics for 3 weeks and have her blood retested.

[akmommy]

There is a virus going around here that can get nasty. I guess the hospital has seen quite a bit o if. A friend is currently in the hospital because she has had it for two weeks and became dehydrated and exhausted her self (she has a lot on her plate right now). Then earlier tonight we took dd to ER when her temp. Spiked to 104 degrees. They tested for strep, flu, pneumonia and a general check for meningitis (not a spinal tap) before deciding it was this unnamed virus.

 

It fit has been going on for a month I think I would want to have her seen by someone else and making sure the more serious possibilities are ruled out (or not).

[hsbaby]

What you're describing sounds similar to what's going around in our family. Dd3 got it the beginning of December and is still not back to herself. Dd13 has had indoor the last two weeks. I seem to have picked it up this last week. The cough us terrible and we are all just tired. We were not given any definitive answers at the doctor, but I may take us all in again tomorrow. Whatever this is has hit a lit if families I know:(. Hope your dd is feeling better soon!

[Pippen]

OK...thank you ladies. I guess I started second-guessing myself after the second visit to the ped. I was convinced at that point something needed to be done and was a little surprised when he didn't agree. He did offer to give her a script for antibiotics (and in hindsight I should have accepted), but I didn't see the point yet if he couldn't definitively determine what was wrong. He just felt it was a bad cold.

 

 

My doctor is pretty stingy with the antibiotics when it isn't clear but occasionally he'll offer a script and say only fill it if _______. I do always accept as it may save another trip in later and I don't always fill them, but it's nice to have the option especially if it's a long weekend or we're heading out of town.

[Mommyfaithe]

I feel a little silly asking this, but my 11yod has been sick for the past 4 weeks and she's not getting better. She appears to have a severe cold that doesn't seem to want to end or even improve. She has the stuffy/runny nose and congestion, an awful cough that for awhile was very loose (now it's dry and sounds painful), red/sore throat, chills, and stomach ache all come and go. She's had a low grade fever that also comes and goes. Swollen lymph glands. Of course she's exhausted. She hasn't been sick enough to stay put in bed all day, but clearly she's not well enough to have a normal active day either.

 

I've taken her to the pediatrician twice. Both times he said her lungs were clear and well, it might be a sinus infection or walking pneumonia. But symptoms weren't severe enough to indicate that for sure. The last time I took her to see him was 10 days ago. She stopped eating today.

 

I've also had a humidifier in her room for the past two weeks, gave her sudafed non-drowsy but that still kept her awake past midnight. Somebody please give me an opinion. How long should i ride this out? Should I take her back to the ped? FYI - she came down with pneumonia two years ago, so I really hate watching this drag out. The angel-girl wants to start up with her swim team again in January and I'd really like to see her back to her old self.

 

This is what happened to my son when he had Lyme disease. I don't know if the have Lyme where you live, but there are other tick borne diseases that have the same symptoms. I would ask for a Western Blot blood test. My son is still suffering from some of the results of having Lyme, so don't be bashful in asking for the test. My son lost most of his swimming for over a year and is definitely not in the competition like he used to be.

 

Hope your baby feels better soon,

Faithe