ange Posted February 9, 2011 Report Posted February 9, 2011 Just thinking...the daughter that I am strongly suspicious of showing signs of Pandas had a reaction after a vaccine about 6 months ago - I don't remember which vaccine it was for, but she was 5 1/2 and her arm got swollen, red and hard. I called the doc and he put her on amoxcil. Having trouble formulating the thought, but this is an autoimmune response, right? Makes sense that maybe she would be Pandas if this is how she reacts to the shot? (She also gets terrible eczema/allergies in the spring, had chest pain which was her only symptom when she had strep, leg pain, now she is having disposition changes.) Any thoughts on this?
thereishope Posted February 9, 2011 Report Posted February 9, 2011 Unfortunately, some parents (not all) do see a connection to vaccines, their child's first exacerbation or a worsening post vaccination. At 5 1/2, you child may have recieved the MMR and/or booster chicken pox which are both live. Many consider live vaccines to carry more risk.
LNN Posted February 9, 2011 Report Posted February 9, 2011 I'm not trying to discount that kids can gave negative reactions to vaccines, by any means. But I am confused by your post. A local redness on the arm is a reaction but it's a fairly common one and could be more of a normal immune system response to a needle injecting something into the body. I don't know that this means it's an "autoimmune" response. I would maybe see "autoimmune" if you were saying you saw unusual neurological behaviors shortly afterward. But I'm trying to help you not freak just because there was a hard red spot at the injection site. I'm also confused about why your doctor would prescribe amoxicillin in response. Aren't measles, mumps, rubella and chicken pox all viruses? So an antibiotic would be useless for these. So I'm just getting confused. I'd recommend finding out what the vaccine was for and also double check with your doctor to verify what the antibiotic was prescribed for. If you're preparing to see a new doctor, then having the correct history and time lines will be important. You may even want to request a copy of all medical records just to have them handy.
Priscilla Posted February 9, 2011 Report Posted February 9, 2011 Just thinking...the daughter that I am strongly suspicious of showing signs of Pandas had a reaction after a vaccine about 6 months ago - I don't remember which vaccine it was for, but she was 5 1/2 and her arm got swollen, red and hard. I called the doc and he put her on amoxcil. Having trouble formulating the thought, but this is an autoimmune response, right? Makes sense that maybe she would be Pandas if this is how she reacts to the shot? (She also gets terrible eczema/allergies in the spring, had chest pain which was her only symptom when she had strep, leg pain, now she is having disposition changes.) Any thoughts on this? I have been down the vaccine school of thought myself, but there is really no way to know for sure. We have just decided no more vaccines. Two things other than the vaccine jump out at me though, chest pain, and leg pain. Both can be symptoms of lyme. Add behaviour changes, I think its worth ruling out before things get worse. I have been VERY skeptical of the lyme issue, so much so that I have put off testing since this started with my dd 8 last april. We had some improvement with abx, went through 4 high dose ivig with some success, but still alot of issues. Then I decided to educate myself as much as possible BEFORE even doing the test.... read cure unknown, did some research, found a reputable LLMD- well, we got a positive result. We are going in for our first appt post test results monday. This has been such a roller coaster so I am not sure what to expect. I will keep posting, and if lyme treatment proves to be the process we have been waiting for to see her get well, I will be shouting it from the roof tops. My point is, educate yourself about lyme and see if it makes sense. Going into the appt I was about 50/ 50 thinking she may or may not have it. Praying we are finally getting the right treatment!
Tenacity Posted February 9, 2011 Report Posted February 9, 2011 (edited) QUOTE: I decided to educate myself as much as possible BEFORE even doing the test.... read cure unknown, did some research, found a reputable LLMD- well, we got a positive result. ------------------------------------------------------- What is "the test"? Edited February 9, 2011 by Tenacity
eljomom Posted February 10, 2011 Report Posted February 10, 2011 I agree with LLM---dd7 got a very hard, red localized swelling at shot sight too. Pretty sure just a localized reaction, but then again, that blase attitude is likely why we ended up where we did--pandas!
Priscilla Posted February 10, 2011 Report Posted February 10, 2011 QUOTE: I decided to educate myself as much as possible BEFORE even doing the test.... read cure unknown, did some research, found a reputable LLMD- well, we got a positive result. ------------------------------------------------------- What is "the test"? I probably should have phrased it "tests"- we did the entire lyme and co-infection panel via Igenex. We also sent a CD 57 to another lab, along with various other tests (CBC, Chemistry, vitamin-D, thyroid, cholesterol, repeated aso, anti-dnase titers- which have now come down to normal range with some symptoms still present...)
ange Posted February 10, 2011 Author Report Posted February 10, 2011 Thanks for the insights. To clarify, it wasn't the usual hard spot at injection site. Her whole upper arm blew up, was hot, very hard, and my understanding was that it was infected. I am having a hard time getting my records form that office, as I am switching from that doc, but will persist. Re: the lyme, I'm also skeptical because I can't imagine when that would have happened, but you're right, it's possible. I plan to see an LLMD to test further co-infections. Do I have to present child by child (i.e. separate consult fees for each kid), or do they do testing on everyone if I want?
P_Mom Posted February 10, 2011 Report Posted February 10, 2011 "whole arm blew up, was hot and very hard"......sounds like cellulitis to me. This just happened to my friends child after a recent vaccination. They told her that if there is any bacteria on the skin, needle, etc.....the puncture allows it to get deep into the skin and cause an infection called cellulitis. (that is why your doc prescribed an antibiotic) It is listed as a possible "complication" of vaccines. My husband also got cellulitis in his arm...same description....swollen, hard, red. His was caused by strep. Two rounds of antibiotics didn't touch it (zith and I forget what else)....clindamycin cleared it up...that was the docs last resort before admitting him to the hospital for IV antibiotics. I agree with others in that it is not an autoimmune response.
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