Rotavirus?

meghans30

I think my 6 yo has a case of rotavirus. This would explain why no one else in our house is sick. My 3 yo received the vaccine and I'm sure my DH and I were exposed as kids. His symptoms :

Vomiting - Friday and Saturday

Fever - Saturday into Sunday

Yellow, rotten egg smelling diarrhea

Abdominal cramping 

We kept him home from school today and plan on keeping him home tomorrow also. Would he still be contagious? And how long does this virus stay around for? We are on day 4.

goodheartedmommy

Sounds like it (based on the smell and the pain). It can last anywhere from 2-10 days, I believe. Ethan had it on the shorter side (he got it at 9 months) and the girls had it for 3 days, I think.

JOEBunny

Poor guy.  I hope he is better soon.  DD had it, she got the vaccine, but spit it out immediately, It lasted for about 2 weeks.  It was a month before she was back to normal, but she was 8 months old.  It is a horrible virus.  I am so glad they have a vaccine.  I made sure DS did not spit it out.  DD was on reflux meds and was quite good at spitting out any med, I knew that, but didn't think to tell the nurse. 

meghans30

So, is there anything I can do? He has eaten very small amounts of toast and apple and fluids for 3 days. Should I call the dr.?

goodheartedmommy

I didn't call the doctor for the girls. I did take Ethan to the hospital, because he was an infant. Is he taking in liquids at all? Pedialyte is necessary with rotavirus IMO. How often is he having diarrhea? Maile had it worse than Bella and would go every 10 minutes for about 6 hours, then she'd go a couple of hours and then have diarrhea for 30 minutes straight, etc. Bella's wasn't quite that bad. Of course, it was after a day of non stop vomiting, so dehydration was a concern. Just encourage him to drink. With rotavirus, brat is fine to an extent, but it's my understanding that you need to let it run its course, so don't try to stop the pooping. Keep him hydrated.

meghans30

goodheartedmommy:

I didn't call the doctor for the girls. I did take Ethan to the hospital, because he was an infant. Is he taking in liquids at all? Pedialyte is necessary with rotavirus IMO. How often is he having diarrhea? Maile had it worse than Bella and would go every 10 minutes for about 6 hours, then she'd go a couple of hours and then have diarrhea for 30 minutes straight, etc. Bella's wasn't quite that bad. Of course, it was after a day of non stop vomiting, so dehydration was a concern. Just encourage him to drink. With rotavirus, brat is fine to an extent, but it's my understanding that you need to let it run its course, so don't try to stop the pooping. Keep him hydrated.

Ughh. Hopefully he will be better by Saturday because we have a party planned for his birthday

Yes, he is drinking fluids. The pooping seemed to pick up after he ate a small amount of apple. He has also peep, so no dehydration. This sucks! 

goodheartedmommy

Sorry! I think he'll be better by Saturday. When it gets to the point that he's gone 6 hours without peeing, that's when you need to call the doctor or go to the ER. All they can do is IV fluids, but sometimes it's necessary for rotavirus.

Mrs Manners

Ds had it when he was 9 months old. He had diarrhea for 9 day, vomiting off and on and some fever. It was horrible. He was so raw from where the diarrhea burned when it touched him that he cried all the time. Hope your dc feels better soon!!

goodheartedmommy

Yeah, I don't know if you could get your son to wear a diaper or not, seeing that he's 6, but diaper rash cream is going to be a must.