fifth's disease

[EAMom]

About 3 weeks ago we noticed a ramp in dd's symptoms. She had an increase in verbal tic and also some restrictive eating. 1.5 weeks ago she developed a fever/sore throat/headache/cough so I brought both girls in (since younger sister is a strep carrier) expecting that at least one of them would test positive for strep. We were surprised that both were negative. PANDAS dd's fever only lasted a day, and the the cough lasted a few days. PANDAS dd's seemed to recover uneventfully and her PANDAS symtpoms now seem to be on the decrease.

 

Well, today she has bright red checks. I've also noticed a red lacework pattern to her arms that past 2-3 days. So, now I realize that she likely had fifth's disease and that explains her "ramp" in PANDAS symtpoms. Fortunately, the ramp was relatively mild (compared to her full blown PANDAS of last spring), but noticeable and worrisome nonetheless. This is the first time we've been able to correlate PANDAS symptoms with a non-strep illness.

[TiredMom]

About 3 weeks ago we noticed a ramp in dd's symptoms. She had an increase in verbal tic and also some restrictive eating. 1.5 weeks ago she developed a fever/sore throat/headache/cough so I brought both girls in (since younger sister is a strep carrier) expecting that at least one of them would test positive for strep. We were surprised that both were negative. PANDAS dd's fever only lasted a day, and the the cough lasted a few days. PANDAS dd's seemed to recover uneventfully and her PANDAS symtpoms now seem to be on the decrease.

 

Well, today she has bright red checks. I've also noticed a red lacework pattern to her arms that past 2-3 days. So, now I realize that she likely had fifth's disease and that explains her "ramp" in PANDAS symtpoms. Fortunately, the ramp was relatively mild (compared to her full blown PANDAS of last spring), but noticeable and worrisome nonetheless. This is the first time we've been able to correlate PANDAS symptoms with a non-strep illness.

 

My dd was fully recovered from her previous PANDAS episode, when she had a big "ramp" in her PANDAS symptoms this time last year after she contracted Fifth's Disease. I'd say she ramped up to 75% compared to her worst episode, and the symptoms slowly tapered down over a 6-8 week period. I remember emailing Dr. K at that point, and him emailing me back that he had seen this happen before. Hope your dd is feeling better. -Peggy