Sunday, June 10, 2012

Need Advice, Please!!

Elena has had one heck of a weekend...the poor kid is teething, all four of her incisors are coming in at the same time...her gums are red & swollen...she's been running a fever all weekend...she also has a cut on her left hand ring finger that has become infected & is also red & swollen...the worst of it tho is she has canker sores on both sides of her tongue, presumably from chewing her tongue because of the teething...this is where I need advice...Elena is resisting drinking anything since is hurts her tongue to suck...aside from applesauce & yogurt, she won't eat anything else & those have to be COLD, so obviously they're soothing to her tongue...short of feeding her ice cream until they heal, what else can I do for her? Does anyone know of any canker remedies that would be appropriate for a 15 month old...


And since I didn't share any purple-crayon-poo photos, I thought I'd share one of her disgustingly infected finger:



8 comments:

  1. yikes, is her finger okay? if the redness spreads up towards her hand, you should go see the doctor.

    as for her mouth... call the doctor (or your pharmacy) and ask for "magic mouthwash." it's used for kids on chemo because they get tons of canker sores, too. i think it's benadryl and milk of magnesia? i always forget and have to look it up because i never prescribe it. anyway, the doctor or pharmacist will know what it is. sometimes there are three ingredients in it.

    popsicles would be good, too. my friend makes all sorts of crazy popsicles. they don't have to be sugar water. she makes hers with smoothies or fruit plus yogurt (fruit in blender first) but has also made ones with veg and i think beans and quinoa.

    what about icy cold drinks in her sippy cup? calliope LOVES ice clinking around in hers! feels good on the gums.

    and finally, how about some motrin or tylenol? those sores can REALLY hurt and you don't want her to get dehydrated. i wouldn't worry about eating so much as drinking.

    good luck!

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  2. When Chase had hand foot and mouth, the pediatrician told me to give him 1/2 tsp maalox mixed with 1/2 tsp of benadryl to soothe his mouth sores and allow him to eat. It sounds weird and wacky but it totally worked. Wait about 10-15 minutes after giving the medicine and then feed her. You can also give her the pedialyte popsicles so she doesn't get dehydrated.

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  4. That benadryl mixed with milk of magnesia or maalox or kaopectate does work wonders. We recommend it in our office, though be careful with how much you use since it is Benadryl. It's just mix equal amounts of liquid benadryl and milk of magnesia or kaopectate or maalox and swab the affected area 4-5 times a day. It doesn't make the sores go away quicker, but it offers some relief. The benadryl seems to numb it a bit and the milk of magnesia or kaopectate help it stay in place for a few minutes. Feed them within 5-10 minutes while their mouths are still a bit numb as it wears off quickly.

    And I agree, if that finger isn't looking better in the am I would take a trip to the doctor. Does she have any spots on her feet in addition to her mouth? What did the spot on her hand start out looking like? IE...is this hand foot and mouth disease? Though it doesn't look like it so much, but I'm basing that on what Tate looked like when he had it.

    Also, the fever. If it's more than a low grade fever, ie 99 or so I don't think I would attribute that to the teething. As you mention the cold sores in her mouth it could also be the primary gingival herpectic stomatitis. That will cause her to be absolutely miserable. Her mouth will be all red and she will run a fever. AND if she had an open cut of some sort on her hand/finger and put said hand/finger in her mouth it could have been infected with the virus in her mouth...make sense?

    Email me if you have any questions cjendds@hotmail.com (did you know I'm a pediatric dentist?) I would be happy to try to help though difficult not in person.

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  5. It sounds like you've gotten some great advice - I hope something works to get poor little Elena feeling better. And I hope you're doing ok through all this!

    Keep us posted!

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  6. I have no advice, but you sure have a great community of helpers. I'm thinking of little Elena. Poor thing. When it rains, it pours! Staying tuned.

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  7. Poor girl. I'm sorry I don't have any advice for you, but I'm glad others gave you some ideas. Hope she gets to feeling better soon! :(

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  8. Poor Elena. I don't have any advice, but hope you find something and that she gets better soon.

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