Please help if you know what this might be

vanity ^ | 19/16/14 | self

[Pining_4_TX]

I am asking Freepers for help in diagnosing the mysterious illness that doctors have failed to diagnose thus far. Our 3-year-old grandson has been sick for several days with high fever, a rash that started on his face but has now spread to his entire body, loss of appetite, and now peeling skin around his eyes, nose and mouth. His fever is minimal during the day, but starts to increase in the afternoon and gets close to 103.

He has been to the doctor several times, had a strep test that came back negative, and was taken to the local children's hospital for dehydration ($400 and all they did was give him juice and crackers). They did a blood test which was normal for white blood cell count, but said he is slightly anemic.

First they thougth he had a recurrence of fifth disease, and the hospital doctors thought he might have mono.

He is finally eating a little and will drink a little juice, but he whines and cries constantly and acts like his feet hurt. His rash is very itchy most of the time, so he scratches at it, particularly around his waist.

If you have any ideas or know of any children who have something similar, please post a reply.

He has another doctor's appointment this afternoon, so we will see if they have any better answers than they have so far.

And pray for him, if you will.

[Pining_4_TX]

I put the source as webmd because I didn't know what to put for a vanity post. I have been looking at webmd and every other medical site I can think of trying to find some answers.

[2ndDivisionVet]

He needs to see a specialist. There are doctors, nurses and others here who can tell you much more.

[NEMDF]

Is it possible that he got into any poison ivy?

[caver]

Maybe he is allergic to something?

[lowbridge]

Prayers

[februus]

Could be something serious like this:

http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/heart/kawasaki.html

[ScottinVA]

If the lesions are small, it sounds like a possibility of a scarletina rash, but he needs to be checked out.

[MagUSNRET]

First thing that jumped into my head when reading your post, was Rheumatic fever...has that been ruled out?

[Cecily]

You could search this site:

http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/bacterial_viral/scarlet_fever.html

[PGalt]

Health/life BTTT for FReeper consideration.

[Pining_4_TX]

Thank you for the link. It is one of the things we considered. He has some of these symptoms but others don’t match. I will mention this possibility to my daughter again so she can ask the doctor.

As far as I am concerned, they should consider anything and everything until they can rule them out.

[Klemper]

Allergic? As in allergic to bed-bug bites possibly?

[SpaceBar]

Sounds similar to the first stages of chicken pox, before the actual lymph filled blisters appear. I had it as an adult. Chest rash, mild fever and lassitude. I consulted a supposed doctor who said I might have fleas in my bedding and suggested bug spray. I still think about that medical quack from time to time.

[Pining_4_TX]

No, he hasn’t gotten into anything. Early on, he was given Benadryl in case it was an allergic reaction to somehthing and that had no effect.

Thank you for the idea though.

[Yaelle]

Sounds exactly like scarlet fever, exactly.

Find a better doctor, sheesh.

http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/understanding-scarlet-fever-basics

He needs antibiotics.

Prayers up for him.

[Wiser now]

Has he possibly been bitten by a vole? His symptoms sound like those of a child from church who was bitten on his farm. He had tularemia.

[Not gonna take it anymore]

A friend of mine was just diagnosed with cellulitis. A small cut in the skin became infected with a staph germ.

. . . What causes cellulitis?

http://www.webmd.boots.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/guide/cellulitis

Cellulitis can be caused by many types of bacteria. The most common is staph (Staphylococcus aureus), followed by strep (Group A Streptococcus). A form of cellulitis caused by strep is called erysipelas; it is characterised by a spreading hot, bright red circumscribed area on the skin with a sharp raised border. Cellulitis from a dog or cat bite or scratch may be caused by the Pasturella multocida bacteria, which has a short incubation period of between four and 24 hours. . . .

[fruser1]

Cystic fibrosis w/subsequent lung infection is possible. CF can make mucus and sweat acidic.

[Pining_4_TX]

I thought about that or measles, but he has had his vaccinations and I would hope that the doctors at the children’s hospital would have recognized any of those diseases. Guess you can’t count on that.

[melissa_in_ga]

Agree. My son had scarlet fever when he was 4. His skin was deep red and peeling off in sheets.