When to get culture, when is it over reacting?

[TracyRee]

I hate this. I hate constantly worrying that every behavior is a symptom, that at any moment he could get worse. I hate wondering if his Asperger's was caused by his pandas. I hate wondering if he could be "cured" if could just figure it out.

 

Wow, didn't see all that coming.

 

Now to my question.

 

How do you decide when to go to the doc and get a culture? When do you chalk it up to "within the range of normal" and just keep an eye out?

 

DS had a few hours of weird bathroom behavior twice this weekend. His sudden onset ocd when this all started was compulsive urination, so it's on my radar. Saturday and Sunday he spent a few hours in the bathroom saying "I feel pee, I have to pee". Of course after the first go his bladder was empty so it was just him standing there trying and getting a few drops every once in while.

 

We went to the doc today and they're checking his urine and sending off a throat culture (rapid came back negative)

 

So I was curious what things trigger you to take them in for a culture?

[bmom]

For my son, the constant pee feeling is a huge clue of strep. The last few times he had strep he has done it!! The last time, he had no other symptoms of illness, and I thought that for sure he did not have strep. Dr. K said take him in to be sure and have him tested. Sure enough, positive on the rapid.

[peglem]

Before my daughter was on prophylactic abx, I would bring her in for a rapid based on ragey behavior. That got us a + @ 95% of the time.

[TracyRee]

Thank you both. He's on zithro twice a week, so we'll see what happens. He's always come back with a positive rapid, so I don't know. The waiting stinks!

[thereishope]

I have different ways. If he's been well for quite a while, I think I will "just know" when it's time for a strep test. If that explosion comes back, I will not hesitate to take him. If he's in recovery mode form a strep infection, I will weigh the severity of the setback. If it's some sliding backwards, I give him 3 days to snap out of it. If that explosion happens, in we go.

 

If you're going crazy with worry, err on the side of caution and take him in. Now, if he's on antibiotcis, remind he doctor of that and how he runs the chance of a false negative test.

[wornoutmom]

For my son, the constant pee feeling is a huge clue of strep. The last few times he had strep he has done it!! The last time, he had no other symptoms of illness, and I thought that for sure he did not have strep. Dr. K said take him in to be sure and have him tested. Sure enough, positive on the rapid.

 

 

Wow - you really have me thinking now. My non-PANDAS son started experiencing this feeling (only at night) some time this winter. It went on for about 2-3 weeks or so. I finally explained to him that it sounded like some OCD to me and we were going to do some ERP on it. Since we've talked about this with his big brother most of his life, he knows it can work and agreed to try it. It worked after about a week of "bossing back" and not getting up that 2nd,3rd fourth time to pee but instead telling himself it was just a brain trick and he had just gone to the bathroom so it couldn't be real. Right around this time he also started biting his lip to the point where he would give himself a fat lip. This was around Dec. My oldest was at his absolute worst in the beginning of Jan. Makes me wonder if the little one was infected? He has always shown the classic strep symptoms in the past and didnot have any (unlike big brother) but it just makes me go hmm.....

[peglem]

Makes me wonder if the little one was infected?

 

I'll bet he was!