Seattle Mama Doc™

When you or your child has a sore throat, it can be hard to tell if it might be something that needs medical intervention, like Strep throat. Strep throat is an infection caused by group A Streptococcus (GAS). When you confirm (by throat swab in the lab) that GAS is present, your child needs 10 days of antibiotics. If the test is negative, it’s unlikely you need any Rx medical treatment! More below:

• Sore Throat
  • Tonsillitis refers to tonsils that are inflamed. Inflamed tonsils (and even when they have white stuff on them) doesn’t necessarily mean your child needs antibiotics. If enlarged tonsils make it hard to swallow or changes the sounds when your child breaths, they need to see a pediatrician.
  • Pharyngitis refers to an inflamed throat. Most episodes of pharyngitis are caused by infections from viruses. Some are caused by other bacteria that live in the throat that aren’t as problematic as GAS and don’t require antibiotic treatment.
  • Viruses, bacteria, allergens, environmental irritants (such as cigarette smoke), and chronic postnasal drip can all cause a sore throat. Most tonsillitis & pharyngitis will typically resolve on their own without prescription treatment.
  • Try acetaminophen or ibuprofen for pain, throat lozenges, warm beverages, gargling salt water and get lots of rest. In time, sore throats typically improve in a few days.
• Strep throat is an infection caused by a specific type of bacteria, Streptococcus. Infections from the bacteria can be minor or severe. When your child has Strep throat, their tonsils are usually very inflamed, they likely have a fever and swollen lymph nodes in the front of the neck, a BAD sore throat, and sometimes a headache. Many children complain of lots of pain with swallowing. Strep throat symptoms typically come in isolation from other “cold symptoms.” With typical strep, most children do not have cough, runny nose or hoarseness (changes in your voice that makes it sound breathy, raspy, or strained). No one can diagnose strep throat just by looking at your throat. Instead, healthcare professionals use two tests to see if group A Strep bacteria are causing a sore throat. A “rapid strep test” involves swabbing your throat and gives results quickly, usually in about 15-20 minutes. The test is accurate about 95% of the time meaning only 1 in 20 people (5%) who have a negative test actually may have the infection. If the rapid test is positive, your doctor or provider will prescribe antibiotics. If the test is negative, your healthcare professional may likely send the swab for a full throat culture (to catch the 5% that falsely didn’t show an infection). A throat culture involves sending a throat swab to a lab for 1-2 days to see if bacteria grow from the sample. If it turns positive, then your child should be treated with an antibiotic for 10 days.

Great information from the American Academy of Pediatrics on the differences between a sore throat and strep.

Two new studies out today on e-cigarettes showed e-cigs remain a significant concern for teen users. E-cigs were found to pass along carcinogens (cancer-causing chemicals) to those who used them and are associated with future tobacco cigarette smoking in teens. Data out today in Pediatrics finds that teens who used e-cigarettes had up to three times greater amounts of five volatile organic compounds (carcinogens) in their urine compared to teens who did not use e-cigarettes at all. Teens using fruit flavored e-cigarette products, often the preferred choices for teens, produced significantly higher levels of acrylonitrile (a volatile organic compound, known to be toxic). Teens who used both e-cigs and tobacco cigs had even higher levels of the carcinogens overall.

Let’s be clear, e-cigarettes are not “safe” nor do they provide health benefits for teens. It’s our obligation to help teens and parents everywhere understand that…the data keeps accumulating as more and more teens use e-cigs across the country. E-cigs tend to increase smoking of traditional tobacco cigarettes, too. My worry is many teens believe e-cigs are safe to use. More and more, I’m certain they are not.

Relevant E-Cigarette Statistics:

• About 95% of adult tobacco users started using before they turned 21 years of age. In the study out today, E-cigs were positively and independently associated with progression to being a regular, established smoker. Researchers conclude, “data suggest that e-cigarettes do not divert from, and may encourage, cigarette smoking” in teen population. Especially in those who have a tried a few cigs but not yet established a smoking habit. Rather than being a “safer” choice e-cigs enhance the choice to smoke traditional cigs in teens.
• Use of e-cigarettes rose 900% between 2011 and 2015. And between 2014 and 2016, US middle and HS students used e-cigs more than any other tobacco product.
• 85% of e-cigarette users ages 12-17 use flavors. In the study out today, carcinogens and toxic substances were increased in teens’ urine in those who used e-cigs compared with those who didn’t. Added risks may be in fruit-flavored e-cigs preferred by teens; even higher levels of a specific toxin (acrylonitrile) was detected.

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As parents, many of us have been there. You’re going about your day and BAM…fear and anxiety start creeping in as soon as you read the email, that perhaps again, there’s an outbreak of lice. Someone in your child’s school has lice and your child may have been exposed…blah, blah, blah. Nothing about this ever feels benign, even though it always is. Lice just feels a gross inconvenience. This post details the lice life cycle, the ways lice spread, and ways you can treat lice with both OTC or prescription medicines.

Lice infestation is common for US children and has nothing to do with cleanliness. The Centers For Disease Control (CDC) estimate 6-12 million lice infestations a year in the United States, but something you cross your fingers doesn’t make its way into your home or hair.

How Lice Live And How Lice Spread

Head lice feed on tiny amounts of blood from the scalp and if they are not on a person’s scalp, they can usually only survive about a day. This is good news for remembering that lice won’t crawl around your home for days — ever. They just can’t. Lice lay their eggs close to the scalp and when on the head can live about 28 days. They can multiply quickly, laying up to 10 eggs a day. It only takes about 12 days for newly hatched eggs to reach adulthood. This cycle can repeat itself every 3 weeks if head lice are left untreated.

Remember that head lice usually only survive for less than 1 day away from the scalp at room temperature. Their eggs cannot hatch at room temperature lower than that near the scalp. So once they fall off a child’s head, lice pose very little threat. You don’t have to vacuum the carpet, sterilize the toys, wash the house top to bottom after your child has lice. I mean you can, but don’t do it for the lice :-).

Lice is typically passed through close person-to-person contact.  Lice crawl, they can’t hop or fly (phew!). Lice mainly move from head-to-head and less commonly move from one person to another on a hairbrush or hat or costume.

Lice At School – Why Kids Don’t Get Sent Home Anymore

The American Academy of Pediatrics and CDC have fought hard against “no nit” policies in schools, in the interest of reducing the school absence associated with head lice. When recurrent infestations occur this can be frustrating but no child really ever needs to miss school for lice. Schools are increasingly unlikely to exclude children for nits, but still, in some schools, the policies persist. The rationale for not sending kids home:

• Many nits are more than ¼ inch from the scalp. Such nits are usually not viable and very unlikely to hatch to become crawling lice, or may in fact be empty shells, also known as ‘casings’.
• Nits are cemented to hair shafts and are very unlikely to be transferred successfully to other people.
• The burden of unnecessary absenteeism to the students, families and communities far outweighs the risks associated with head lice.
• Misdiagnosis of nits is very common during nit checks conducted by non-medical personnel.

Over The Counter Lice Products

Most of the time the very best bet for lice are OTC, easy-to-use treatments. The FDA has approved over-the-counter (OTC) lice products as safe and effective when used according to the Drug Facts label instructions. There are 3 main ingredients used to treat lice: Permethrin, most commonly found in the OTC product Nix or Piperonyl Butoxide and Pyrethrum Extract, most commonly found in Pronto or Rid. Each product has different and specific treatment instructions, like if hair needs to be shampooed first or if dry hair is needed, the age a child has to be for these products to be used on their scalp and if and when a second treatment is recommended. If the thought of dealing with lice makes you light-headed, there are lice-removal services available. They’re not cheap (starting around $100 in the Seattle area), but some parents may find the expense well worth the piece of mind of getting rid of lice manually by professionals. Read full post »