Monday Update April 23rd

We are still seeing lots of hand foot mouth. ( It gets top billing for the week) Some of my patients are starting off with a fever and some vomiting for a day or so before the spots come out. Some of the lesions are hanging on for more than a week. We consider the kids okay to return to school or daycare once they are fever free for over 24 hours and feeling okay. If they are utterly miserable and not eating much, I would rather they stay home(even if they are fever free). If they are happy as can be and seem well except for lingering blisters...send them to day care. One of my loyal blog readers suggested that I refer any further questions about hand foot mouth to a lengthy post about it back in October 2011 ( check the archives) We have seen an upsurge in conjunctivitis this week. It may be from allergies. Some of the cases have resolved without the use of eye drops. If the discharge from the eye is really green and yellow then it is more likely that the drops are necessary. We have seen a normal amount of ear infections, a few kids with diarrhea, typical coughs and colds and a bit of a flare up in my wheezers ( also possibly from the warm weather and high pollen count). Of course when the weather hits the 80s we see plenty of cases of heat rash.. With the warm weather we have also seen a few tick bites.. Make sure you check your kids head to toe ( including the hair and ears) after any hiking expeditions. Check car seats as well. We are starting to fill up with check ups. If your child is due for their annual exam or has any camp forms that need to be filled out, do yourself a favor and call well in advance so that you can be assured of a convenient slot with your primary doctor. Stay well Judy