Urgent care tonight or wait another day?

[Tap]

DD6 has had a sore throat for 3 full days with very mild cold symptoms. She doesn't seem to be sniffing so I don't think it is post nasal drip causing the throat issue. She has a headache in the back of her head (not sinus area) and is more tired than usual. She went and played with friends today while I was at work, so she isn't lethargic or too tired to play. A possible, intermittent low grade fever of maybe 99-100. The sore throat seems to be staying the same or getting worse day by day, not getting better. The only other thing she is complaining about is being cold. She doesn't seem to have chills and I raised the temp in the house to 71* from our usual 69* but she is still chilly.

 

She has school in the morning so I am wondering if I should take her into the 24hr urgent care tonight to get a strep culture. If I know she has strep, I will keep her home tomorrow but otherwise she seems fine for school. She goes to 2 hours of kindergarten so it isn't an overwhelming long day that I am signing her up for. But I do work tomorrow so if I keep her home or take her to the doctor then, I will miss a day of work.

 

If she does have strep, we can't start meds until tomorrow since the pharmacies are closed tonight. (24hr one is 30 minutes away and doesn't take her insurance). Sometimes they will give the starting dose at the urgent care, but not always

 

WWYD?

 

FYI: As far as treating the throat... She won't drink anything unusual or warm to calm the thoat, just cold water. She has taken a moderate dose of ibuprofen and the pain is still there.

[AK_Mom4]

My kids never got strep, so a sore throat would mean she just takes it easy and drinks more liquid. No urgent care and also no school if her throat is still sore in the morning.

 

If your kid has a history of strep, I would make the trip to the urgent care though and get the strep test.

[Guest inoubliable]

I'd take her into the pediatrician tomorrow. She doesn't seem to be in *really bad* shape tonight and you can't get to a pharmacy until tomorrow anyway. Hope she feels better soon!

[regentrude]

Other. When my kids were younger, I would have kept them home from school and waited a few more days for it to either go away or get worse. With three days of sore throat and low grade fever we would not have seen a doctor- we would have tried bed rest and home remedies first.

 

Hope she feels better soon.

[NotSoObvious]

Sounds like strep. :(

 

I wouldn't send her to school because she's had the fever for a few days. Even if it isn't strep, it sounds like she needs to rest and get better. Maybe a day at home would help her get better, but pushing her tomorrow might make it worse.

 

Tough call.

 

I'd be taking her to Urgent Care, but that's me. When I was teaching and my girls were in kindergarten, I swear we spent at least five Sunday nights at Urgent Care for either strep or ear infections.

[Chris in VA]

I don't send mine anywhere with a fever, even a mild one. Isn't she contagious?

I'd take her to the Dr tomorrow to rule out strep.

[Amy in NH]

I'd use a flashlight to take a peek a the throat. White patches would indicate strep.

[Miss Marple]

That is how my son presented...a sore throat for several days but not much else. About day 4 or 5 he started developing the fever and severe headache. Fever spiked at 104. Called the doc who said that was how the flu was presenting around here. We put him on Tamiflu (although probably a little late) and it seemed to help. But he had a long lingering cough.

 

If it were me, I'd probably keep her home because it may be strep but it could also be flu.

 

ETA: I would check her fever in the morning and if normal send her to school - it's only 2 hours.

[Tap]

I don't send mine anywhere with a fever, even a mild one. Isn't she contagious?

I'd take her to the Dr tomorrow to rule out strep.

 

 

School says stay home for fevers over 100*. I don't think she has broken that barrier. She had a dose of Ibuprofen at 9am and I just checked on her temp before she got another dose. She is still only around 99.5* even without the med on board. High enough to know her body is working on fighting off something, but not so high that I am worried about sending her to school for 2 hours.

[Tap]

I don't send mine anywhere with a fever, even a mild one. Isn't she contagious?

I'd take her to the Dr tomorrow to rule out strep.

 

 

Tried...can't see. I can see the red border on the back of her soft pallett but can't see the back of her throat.

[chepyl]

Look at her throat and smell her breath. You will see white spots and smell the strep of she has it. I can't describe it, but it is very different from regular breath or bad morning breath. If the thraot is just red, I would keep her home to rest, white spots and funky breath - doctor.

[Tap]

Sounds like strep. :(

 

I wouldn't send her to school because she's had the fever for a few days. Even if it isn't strep, it sounds like she needs to rest and get better. Maybe a day at home would help her get better, but pushing her tomorrow might make it worse.

 

Tough call.

 

I'd be taking her to Urgent Care, but that's me. When I was teaching and my girls were in kindergarten, I swear we spent at least five Sunday nights at Urgent Care for either strep or ear infections.

 

 

 

This is what I keep telling myself. If I think it is strep, then I should take her tonight so we can start meds asap in the am (possibly even tognight if they have a dose on hand). If I don't think it is strep, then just looking at the symptoms by themselves don't scream 'keep her home' to me. LOL So I need to make a decision on what I think it is, and move on that decision. LOL Obviously if she is dramatically worse, then I won't send her in the am, but so far the past 3 days, she has just seemed to have a little cold...no biggie.

[Celia]

Well, you know she's fighting something, and you don't know what that something is, so I don't think it would be very nice to expose other kids to it, even if the day is short. I'd probably wait until tomorrow (sleep is a good thing!) and if her she still has symptoms that concern you, take her in to be checked out. Personally, I'd just keep her home and observe... doesn't sound bad enough to take her in to a doctor yet.

[Halftime Hope]

I odn't know if this still holds true, but years ago the ped told me the classic presentation for strep was a "raw hamburger" look in the throat. If you google that, you still get a lot of similar descriptions including many pictures. I got strep a lot as a young adult and mine was generally too sore for me to want to open my mouth that wide. Ds1 had it when he was three, and seemingly without pain, although he sure had the redness!

 

ETA: you may or may not have the white spots and the "breath" according to the reading I just did.

[Jann in TX]

Sounds a lot like the virus that DH just shared with me....

 

Raw throat, BAD headache upper-- near back of head (strange place for me to have one).

 

Just feel like hiding in bed-- but I have papers to grade!

 

This crud (a virus) tends to last for 1-2 weeks!

 

Please keep her home as this is VERY contageous.

[staceyobu]

It sounds viral to me. I thought strep usually had a high temp with it? I'd keep her home and let her rest tomorrow. You can get over strep without antibiotics even if it is that.

[Tap]

Just to update, we decided to put off the urgent care and try to talk to the peds office early in the AM (before school). I went to check on her and she was dozing on the couch, I decided to just let her sleep, so I tucked her into bed with a glass of ice water by her bedside.

 

We will see how she feels in the morning in regards to school. She has Aspergers so keeping her away from her regular routine isn't easy, it can set her off emotionally for the whole week (you know how you have an unexpected day off and then you can't keep track of the days....). That is part of why I wanted to know before bed what I was planning to do about school. It is better to prepare her at night for a schedule change than spring it on her in the in AM.

 

 

I don't worry about spreading her germs. It really looks like a simple cold. It is just the 3x day of sore throat and headache that has me bothered. They actually tell you to not keep a kid home with minor cold symptoms unless there is a complication (fever over 100, vomiting, etc). Kids/school/colds just kinda go together so unless there is a specific reason or the child is really not feeling good, they are welcomed with open arms and a tissue.

 

Thanks for your advice everyone, it helps a lot to know that waiting 12 hours wasn't unreasonable.

[gardenmom5]

sore throats can be from post-nasal drip even without sniffles. (I've had many.) are you giving her a decongestant?

 

even without strep - the school would probably send her home. you should check their website for what illness symptoms they want you to keep home.

[Tap]

sore throats can be from post-nasal drip even without sniffles. (I've had many.) are you giving her a decongestant?

 

even without strep - the school would probably send her home. you should check their website for what illness symptoms they want you to keep home.

 

I checked the handout they sent home at the beginning of the year...it says send her.

 

not directed at you, just a random question....I don't know if it matters but we live in the PNW. Since people stay inside most of the winter months, colds are very common in schools. Maybe colds area more prevalent here than in warmer climates?

 

No decongestant. I have given it to her in the past but I prefer not to because she is on a slew of other meds due to her mental health issues. I may try it tomorrow if I will be home with her to observe and make sure she doesn't have any complications.

[Melissa in Australia]

other.

I would keep her home and let her rest in bed. I wouldn't bother about urgent care at all unless she got worse. The absolute best was to get better fast is to get heaps of rest.

[JFSinIL]

I don't send mine anywhere with a fever, even a mild one. Isn't she contagious?

I'd take her to the Dr tomorrow to rule out strep.

 

 

I agree. Don't be "that parent" who takes her sick kid out and makes mine sick, too. AND - after four kids and multiple bouts with strep - they don't always have the white patches on the back of the throat. Not always a high fever, either. I took 16-yr-old dd in a couple months back for a persistent cough - she had bronchitis...and also strep!!! (she had thought her minor sore throat was due to coughing so much.) No fever. No spots. Not the first time one of mine has been streppy (one kid always presents with nausea).

 

Our ped. often was most concerned when we, the parent, knew something was "off" with the kid.

[Matryoshka]

I agree. Don't be "that parent" who takes her sick kid out and makes mine sick, too. AND - after four kids and multiple bouts with strep - they don't always have the white patches on the back of the throat. Not always a high fever, either. I took 16-yr-old dd in a couple months back for a persistent cough - she had bronchitis...and also strep!!! (she had thought her minor sore throat was due to coughing so much.) No fever. No spots. Not the first time one of mine has been streppy (one kid always presents with nausea).

 

Our ped. often was most concerned when we, the parent, knew something was "off" with the kid.

 

 

:iagree: Strep does not always have a fever, and it doesn't even always have a sore throat (with or without patches)! It can present as headache and/or stomachache.

 

My rule is, if they have a sore throat that hasn't progressed within a day or two to include significant nasal congestion and/or cough (this is what I think of with "cold"), then we get a strep culture.

 

Strep can become very serious if not treated - develop into rheumatic fever or PANDAS. Not worth skipping the quick trip for a throat swab.

 

My kids never got strep, so a sore throat would mean she just takes it easy and drinks more liquid.

 

Not having had strep before does not make you immune. :confused1:

[Paige]

I wouldn't call anything under 100 a fever. Normal temps can vary. For me, it would depend on how she is acting. If she's acting a little sniffly but mostly playing normally, I'd think it is likely a cold or allergies and send her to school. If she is acting sicker or miserable, I'd keep her home but would not go to the Dr. just yet. It sounds like a very mild virus, no matter what it is. I would take a look at the throat and check for patches if she is cooperative enough. Usually strep makes people more miserable than just a mild sore throat.

 

I've had kids who had stealth strep- no overt symptoms at all, but what can you do? I wish they sold a home rapid strep test. It would reduce medical costs for sure.

[clarkacademy]

School says stay home for fevers over 100*. I don't think she has broken that barrier. She had a dose of Ibuprofen at 9am and I just checked on her temp before she got another dose. She is still only around 99.5* even without the med on board. High enough to know her body is working on fighting off something, but not so high that I am worried about sending her to school for 2 hours.

 

Not to be said in a mean way but, you know your kid is sick. Your letting her play with other kids and possibly go to school so she can spread her germs. I understand you don't wnna miss work but no one else wants to miss work either. So basically anyone your kid gets sick whos parents work are gonna miss because your kid got sick, and you didn't want to keep her home. I know that sounds kinda crappy but I worked two jobs when my kids were little and missing cause they were sick meant less to spend on groceries or perhaps the rent.

 

There would be alot less going arpoud if parents would take care of their kids instead of spreading it everywhere when they are sick. Their germs could be spread to elderly people in other families, immune weak kids etc. If your kid is sick they stay home. I don't see how this is a question at all.

[QueenCat]

The rule for school here is 24 hrs fever free.

 

Every school I taught in or my kids attended (pre-homeschooling) said 24 hours fever free WITHOUT the aid of medication, such as Tylenol or Ibuprofen. We considered 100.0 to be a fever.

[brookspr]

I would not be happy if I knew another parent sent their child to school when they were contagious with anything, regardless of whether the fever/symptoms were bad enough according to school rules to be sent home. Chances are she will be coughing and spreading her germs all around the classroom for others to catch. Any child with a fever and sore throat should stay home until the fever is gone for 24 hours without medication. I know my own kids wouldn't be able to concentrate at school with those symptoms anyways, and chances are the fever will go over 100 if she is running around, going out to recess, and being active instead of resting.

[Starr]

She sounds like she's worse than a little cold. Poor girl. :grouphug: This is why I often say we all might as well get on that plane and go where ever because no one else is keeping their kids home. That sore throat feels terrible and no one else wants one. It's really hard when you have to work. Can someone else stay with her?

[chiguirre]

School says stay home for fevers over 100*. I don't think she has broken that barrier. She had a dose of Ibuprofen at 9am and I just checked on her temp before she got another dose. She is still only around 99.5* even without the med on board. High enough to know her body is working on fighting off something, but not so high that I am worried about sending her to school for 2 hours.

 

I'd either send her to school if she's perky or take her to the doctor so you have the medically excused absence. I wouldn't waste an "unexcused" absence on keeping her home to see if it gets worse before you take her to the doctor.

[Tap]

 

morning update. woke with no sore tnroat, no fever. she is her normal self. looks like it she kicked it

 

 

 

 

yeah!!!!!!