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After my post about complications of the flu, a reader chided me on short-changing a couple of complications. One was ear infections. I wrote that if you develop an ear infection and can’t get to a doctor, you can treat it easily with antibiotics. But, the reader asked, what if you don’t have them? Is there anything else you can do? The truth is, you may not even need the antibiotics. [... continue reading] 
Photo of baby by Jacob Johan, hand photo by Marc van der Chijs, leg photo by Care_SMC—all on Flickr.
Rash: One word for so many problems. A rash can indicate a simple irritation a bath can soothe, a life-threatening disease, or many things in between. And sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference. This slideshow has pictures of common childhood rashes, but this is for general information. In your case, the rash may not look like it does in these photos. And as you’ll see, one rash can easily be confused with another. This blog gives ideas for what to do when getting to a doctor is difficult or impossible. But children with rashes are special creatures. They can seem fine and get sick quickly. See a doctor if you can. Now, on to the rashes! [... continue reading] 
Strawberry tongue is a swollen, red tongue. The surface looks like a strawberry. Children with Kawasaki disease also tend to have bright red, cracked, sometimes swollen lips. Your four-year-old develops a 103 degree fever and a rash over her body. Her throat is bright red. In fact, so is her mouth, even her tongue. Not the usual pink. Bright red. Hmm, you remember reading something The Survival Doctor wrote about fever and a red tongue. Strawberry tongue. You look again. The swollen, red taste buds are, in fact, kind of popped out, making the tongue look like a strawberry. Now you remember. A strawberry red tongue and fever can mean something serious—something that needs to be treated by a doctor. Oh, did I mention you’re in the middle of a disaster? All the phones are down and the roads blocked? [... continue reading] 
My post on rashes in children is by far my most popular. If you haven’t read it, please do. And note the many helpful comments that continue to come in almost daily. It was out of these comments that I picked my next batch of common childhood rashes. [... continue reading] 
In this photo, the tibial tubercle (the knot below the knee) seems swollen; however, some people have more prominent knot than others anyway. Children can get most of the same knee injuries as adults. They can sprain, tear, or break something at any age. But some knee injuries are more common in kids. In fact, one always begins in the growing years. Osgood-Schlatter is technically a disease, but I think of it as an injury—kind of the tennis elbow of children’s knees. In fact, Osgood-Schlatter treatment and tennis elbow treatment are about the same. [... continue reading] 
A nit (egg). Those red spots are eyes. When you check for head lice, the nits look like white dandruff, but they don’t brush off easily. by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H. It’s back-to-school time. And soon afterwards, a young child’s rite of passage—the note from the teacher stating your little darling has head lice. I can hear the collective “but we’re not a nasty family” now. For the umpteenth time, no one—not the teacher nor the principle nor the doctor—thinks you are. It’s not a question of cleanliness. [... continue reading] 
by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H. Over-the-counter cold and cough medicines are no longer an option for children under five. That’s what makes the information in a new study so great. We already knew honey was a good alternative for a cough—actually better in some cases than anything else—but now we know more details. [... continue reading] 
Though it’s popular, most studies say echinacea extract doesn’t work for colds in children. In adults, studies show mixed results. by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H. Okay, I know I’m going to get into trouble with some of you here; I just feel it in my bones. The same American Family Physician article that named study-proven common cold treatments also listed treatments proven not to work. If you’ve tried these and they work for you, be my guest. Except for one: [... continue reading] 
Split second before a sneeze. by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H. No one wants to deal with the symptoms of a cold during a disaster—actually during any time, now that I think of it. But being in close quarters with others will put you at increased risk. Even if you’re a loner, the natural stress of the situation is going to lower your immune system. So what can you do? Antibiotics won’t help. In fact, treating a cold is one of those times when natural solutions may be the only solution. The journal American Family Physician has a new article called “Treatment of the Common Cold in Children and Adults.” There’s still no cure, but this article cites proven methods to prevent colds and to shorten the course if you have one. Some things work better on children than adults and vice versa. [... continue reading] 
A gravestone for two siblings* who died of whooping cough and the measles within two days of each other in 1821 in Massachusetts, according to FindaGrave.com. Whooping cough is making a comeback. Fortunately, we have better hospitals and treatments, but people—especially babies—still die of it. by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H. Whooping cough (pertussis) has become epidemic in some areas of the United States. For instance, in 2011 in Washington State, there had been 180 cases from January 1 to June 14. In 2012, there have been 2,520. That’s the largest number of cases since 1942. Whooping cough is very contagious, and the current vaccine’s not working so well. So it’s something you need to know how to treat if you can’t get to a doctor. [... continue reading] |
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