Eagle Run Health Update

Week of Jan. 2
The Eagle Run office is seeing a lot of children with lingering colds, as well as flu symptoms. Symptoms of a cold may include a runny or stuffy nose, fever, sore throat, cough or red and watery eyes. Because colds are cuased by a virus, antibiotics will not help. Treat the symptoms and encourage your child to get plenty of rest.

Usually, a child whose vomiting is caused by a virus also has diarrhea. The vomiting usually stops in 6 to 24 hours. Changes in diet can prevent excessive vomiting and dehydration. If your child also has diarrhea, the diarrhea will usually continue for several days. Offer small amounts of clear fluids for 8 hours, then offer bland floods after 8 hours without vomiting. If your child has vomiting without diarrhea and it lasts for more than 24 hours, your child may have something more serious. Call the office if your child shows signs of dehydration (no urine in over 8 hours, dry mouth, no tears when crying), vomits up blood or something that looks like coffee grounds, vomits repeatedly and has diarrhea, has abdominal pain when not vomiting, is confused or difficult to awaken or starts acting very sick.

Week of Dec. 19
Eagle Run children are coming into the office with strep throat and mono. Strep throat is an inflamed (red and swollen) throat caused by a bacterial infection. It is diagnosed with a Strep test. With antibiotics, the fever and much of the sore throat are usually gone within 24 hours. It is important to treat strep throat to prevent some rare, but serious, complications such as rheumatic fever. Strep throat can spread to others in the family. Be sure to practice good hygiene and replace the child's toothbrush to avoid re-infection.

Blood tests can confirm mono. It's a viral infection, however, so antibiotics won't cure it. The best treatment is usually three weeks of rest and limited activity. Have your child avoid strenuous exercise and contact sports until the pediatrician says the spleen has returned to normal size.

Week of Dec. 5
The Eagle Run pediatricians are seeing a lot of children with colds this week. A cold is simply an upper respiratory infection of the nose and throat caused by a virus. Symptoms may include a runny or stuffy nose, fever, sore throat, cough or red and watery eyes. Because colds are cuased by a virus, antibiotics will not help. Treat the symptoms and encourage your child to get plenty of rest.

A fever associated with a cold will usually last 2 or 3 days. The sore throat may last up to 5 days. Nasal discharge and discharge may continue up to 2 weeks and a cough may last up to 3 weeks. Call your pediatrician if your child's breathing becomes difficult or rapid, the fever lasts more than 3 days, the sore throat lasts more than 5 days or the eyes develop a yellow discharge.

Week of Oct. 10
Croup is making its way around the Eagle Run area. Croup is most commonly caused by viruses. It is sometimes, but rarely, caused by bacteria or allergies. A child becomes infected through direct contact with a person, or the secretions of another person who is infected with the disease. Younger children are more affected by croup because their airways are smaller. Symptoms of the croup will vary with each child, and may include runny nose, congestion, a cough that develops into a "seal's bark," laryngitis, fever and a high-pitched sound that is usually noted as the child breathes in. Call the office if you suspect your child may have croup.

Week of Sept. 26
The Eagle Run office is seeing a lot of children with lingering colds, as well as flu symptoms. Symptoms of a cold may include a runny or stuffy nose, fever, sore throat, cough or red and watery eyes. Because colds are cuased by a virus, antibiotics will not help. Treat the symptoms and encourage your child to get plenty of rest.

Week of Sept. 12
The Eagle Run pediatricians are seeing a lot of enterovirus. These viruses are almost as common as a cold and are very contagious. They spread easily from stool to skin to mouth. Summer and early fall are the main enterovirus seasons. The symptoms are similar to the flu and include fever, muscle aches, tummy aches, loose stools or a rash. In rare cases, enteroviruses can cause neurological infections, including meningitis, encephalitis and illnesses that cause paralysis. The best way to prevent the spread of these viruses are general cleanliness and frequent hand washing. Antibiotics are not necessary.

Week of Aug. 29
Strep throat and severe cases of mono are going around the Eagle Run area. Strep throat is caused by a bacteria, and your child may experience a sore throat, difficulty swallowing, a fever of 101 F or higher adn swelling of the tonsils or glands in the neck. Treatment includes antibiotics prescribed by your pediatrician. Don't forget to replace your child's toothbrush to avoid re-infection.

Mono symptoms include swollen lymph glands and excessive fatigue. Fever, sore throat and jaundice may also be present. A blood test will need to be done to confirm diagnosis. Symptoms may last for one to two months.

Week of Aug. 15
The Mission Village pediatricians are seeing patients with swimmer's ear. This is a painful infection of the ear canal that leads to the ear drum. The infection can be caused by any activity that allows water to enter the ear. Your child can develop swimmer's ear from a warm humid climate, from showering or even from washing his or her hair. Calll the office if your child's ear feels blocked or if it itches, if any fluid drains from the ear or if the ear becomes painful and tender to touch, especially around the cartilage.

Week of Aug. 1
Eagle Run staff have seen a lot of children with hand, foot and mouth disease. The Coxsakie virus is responsible for hand, foot and mouth disease. Symptoms vary. Your child may experience small and painful sores in the mouth, small water blisters or simple red spots on the hands and feet. It's quite common for children with this condition to run a fever between 100 F and 102 F. This disease is quite contagious, with an incubation period of about 3 to 6 days after contact. The condition is harmless, and your child can return to school or child care after the fever is controlled.

The fever may last for three or four days. The mouth sores disappear in seven days and the rash on hands and feet can last up to 10 days. Consult your pediatrician on ways to help treat the sores. Call your child's doctor right away if:

If you child has not urinated for more than 8 hours
Your child gets a stiff neck
Your child acts very sick

Call your child's doctor during office hours if the fever last for more than 3 days or if you have other concerns or questions.

Week of July 18
The Eagle Run pediatricians are seeing patients coming in with bug bites. Mosquitoes rest during the day and become active at dusk. The skin irritation you feel after a bite is your allergic reaction to their saliva. Mosquito-borne illnesses, such as West Nile virus, can be passed through just one bite. Still, the chances of any given bite causing the disease are very low. To help avoid mosquitoes bites:

Use insect repellent outside.
Wear long sleeves, long pants, shoes and socks.
Stay indoors, especially at dusk and dawn.
Fix window and door screens.
Get rid of breeding sites, including all forms of standing water.
Keep grass and weeds cut short.
Use mosquito netting if you sleep outdoors.
Don't depend on insect light electrocuters ("bug zappers") to control mosquitoes. They do little to reduce biting in an area.

Week of July 4
Sore throats are going around the Eagle Run area; however, they don't appear to have other symptoms of strep throat or colds.

Bug bites and herpangina (hand, foot and mouth disease) are going around as well. Both conditions tend to increase during the summer months. Herpangina symptoms include a fever with a rash possibly appearing a couple of days later. The location of the rash may vary in the areas of the hands, feet and/or mouth. The rash may last up to 7 to 10 days.

Treatments for herpangina include pain medicine, lots of fluids, and symptomatic care. Call your pediatrician if your child's temperature reaches 105 F, and/or if severe painful blisters appear in mouth. Proper hand-washing is essential in preventing the spread of this virus. To try to prevent bug bites, avoid exposure at twilight, when mosquitoes are most active and spray skin with a repellent containing DEET or Picaridin (KBR 3023).