ChristusG Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 On Tuesday my two DD's played with their friends. On Thursday we find out that their friends came down with strep throat. Last night DD4 begins running a fever and her nose is all stuffy. Would you automatically assume it's strep throat? I've had strep before and I was absolutely miserable, my throat was raw, and I couldn't eat a thing. I don't want DD4 to get to that point. I'm wondering if I should go ahead and take her to urgent care this morning? However, her throat is not hurting. And I looked up strep throat online and it said that if you have cold symptoms, that does not go along with strep. I don't know whether to take her in or not. I don't want her throat to get bad. But then again, she has cold symptoms. It just seems like too much of a coincidence that their friends came down with strep throat and now she has a fever. Since the fever just began last night, would a throat swab even pick up the strep yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 I had the same thing happen and called my pediatrician. It happened to not be strep throat for my kids... but I would still call. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebecca Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Strep throat is really, really tricky!!! :( My kids have had it along with cold symptoms. They have had sore throats and NOT had it. They do usually have a sore throat- but sometimes it is really mild and goes away. I would probably have her checked just to be safe. It can cause more damage if it is left untreated... better to be safe than sorry is my motto with it. But you could also wait a bit and see how she does. However, we have had strep- where they seem to be getting better...but it is still strep. It is a stinky thing to deal with! So sorry, Rebecca Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 (edited) Even if this is the beginning of strep, a swab isn't likely to come back positive this morning. I'd treat it like any other illness for the moment and reconsider on Monday morning. Obviously if she gets a high fever or a truly terrible sore throat, you could take her in sooner. But I suspect she'll be okay 'til Monday either way. On the other hand, it may be obvious by then that it's "just" a cold and you'll feel better about waiting it out. Either way, she doesn't really have symptoms of strep yet and since the rapid test would be unreliable at this point, I'd wait. ETA: I totally agree that strep is nasty and horrible and *needs* to be treated with antibiotics. And my kids have had strep without sore throats, etc, etc. It can be tricky. But even paranoid as I am about strep, in this case I'd wait. Edited March 19, 2011 by abbeyej Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frontier Mom Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 I would try to get her to gargle with warm salt water. Maybe let her do that in the shower where she can make a game of it or something. The salt water will sometimes kill the strep in her throat if she was exposed. This sounds more like allergy symptoms than strep throat. I would try something like Dimetap for that age and it will treat cold and allergy symptoms. If this doesn't seem to help, it could be strep. Also, some tylenol type medicine for the fever will make her more comfortable. It is my understanding that strep usually takes about a week to produce symptoms, or that has been my experience. You can almost count the days, one week for us if they are passing it around and the next one will get the symptoms. Hope she feels better soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 When my kid's friend was diagnosed with it her only symptom was malaise. Yes, it can be very tricky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2J112903 Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 J has had mulitple cases of Strep, and almost every case presented itself differently. I know for J, if he was exposed to Strep, he would have it within the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn. Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Even if this is the beginning of strep, a swab isn't likely to come back positive this morning. I'd treat it like any other illness for the moment and reconsider on Monday morning. Obviously if she gets a high fever or a truly terrible sore throat, you could take her in sooner. But I suspect she'll be okay 'til Monday either way. On the other hand, it may be obvious by then that it's "just" a cold and you'll feel better about waiting it out. Either way, she doesn't really have symptoms of strep yet and since the rapid test would be unreliable at this point, I'd wait. ETA: I totally agree that strep is nasty and horrible and *needs* to be treated with antibiotics. And my kids have had strep without sore throats, etc, etc. It can be tricky. But even paranoid as I am about strep, in this case I'd wait. :iagree: My kids get cold symptoms w/ strep usually, but not always. But they never test pos. for the first couple of days. I'd wait until Monday. It would really stink for your dd to have it, test neg., be miserable even longer, and you ending up having to go back a second time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEP Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 i agree. if you wait until monday, there is less chance of a false negative. also often kids complain of tummy ache with strep instead of sore throat. don't know why. when i had strep it was AWFUL. i would keep them away from other kids and dose up on the purell for the family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted March 19, 2011 Author Share Posted March 19, 2011 Thanks everyone! Wow, it's crazy how different it can present in each person! I think I'll wait until Monday unless she starts complaining of her throat a lot before then. The only thing that stinks is that she has an appointment with her opthamoligist on Monday morning and we've been waiting on that appointment for quite a while. I guess we'll just have to reschedule....hopefully we won't get charged a fee since I'll have to cancel only a few hours before her appointment on Monday morning. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrappyhomeschooler Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 My sister (lives with us) and I both had terrible sore throats and tested positive for strep. Both my boys seemed fine, had no symptoms, etc. I had them tested anyway, and they were both positive as well! So, she may have a cold AND strep. No way to know unless you get a swab. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 I would get some oregano oil if you don't have some already. It can cure strep throat and is natural and completely safe for littles. I give my kids a half a dose at the first signs of getting sick and they usually don't ever catch the cold. I give them 2 drops mixed with apple juice. I usually mix it with a single squirt of this as well and it's wonderful. We take it at the first signs of illness and often don't catch it. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 I would get some oregano oil if you don't have some already. It can cure strep throat and is natural and completely safe for littles. I give my kids a half a dose at the first signs of getting sick and they usually don't ever catch the cold. I give them 2 drops mixed with apple juice. I usually mix it with a single squirt of this as well and it's wonderful. We take it at the first signs of illness and often don't catch it. :) Thanks for that. I didn't know how I could give it to my kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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