Roseola

This is the first time I came upon this condition.

Kang was down with high fever over the weekends that lasted around 4 days. Prior to this, he had very mild diarrhoea since mid-week. He kept waking up in the night (<1hr between each session) and paracetamol, regular sponging and bathing didn't seem to do much to bring down the temperature. So we brought him to the doctor after 2 nights (Meanwhile, En also caught a mild runny nose and cough). He was prescribed Ibufen, which proved much more effective. However, as his fever was recovering, his diarrhoea took a turn for the worse (although not as bad as when hit by the rotavirus). The day his fever fully subsided, his body broke out in red spotty rashes, even on the side of his face and neck (the sister spotted them first in the morning :)).

We decided to bring him to the doc again if condition failed to improve by the evening. Meanwhile, I ran a check on the internet to see what could have caused the spotting. One particular condition seemed to fit the description of his symptoms most - Roseola. Sudden high fever spanning 3-5 days, may have vomitting or diarrhoea, red spotty rashes (non-itchy) after fever subsides, poor appetite.......

Apparently, this is caused by a type of herpes virus (albeit non-sexually transmitted). It usually hits tots between 6 mths - 2 yrs (adults carrying the virus usually show no symptoms at all). Since condition is usually suspected only upon appearance of rashes (by then, it has already past the most contagious period), it is almost impossible to curb it's transmission (like most virus, it is transmitted by saliva or respiratory droplets — when an infected person sneezes or coughs, for example — or by fecal-oral contact).

Treatment is symptomatic so we'll have to let the virus run it's course (we got some lacteolfort for his diarrheoa). The good news: Once your child has had roseola, he'll probably have lifelong immunity to it.

For now, although he is almost recovered (with diarrheoa improving and the rashes), he is grumpier than ever. Owwwwwwww.... sleepless nights and hair-raising days.....