Possible chicken pox vax reaction... wwyd?
ECUGirl2004
member
Over the weekend, Nate ran an off-and-on again fever. Friday it was up to 103 and Sat it was 102, but then he was fine all day yesterday. He didn't seem to feel bad other than the fever, and I chalked it up to teething.
Today when I went to pick him up from daycare, his teacher told me he had a strange rash in his diaper area. She said that it looked like chicken pox to her. The bumps are red and some of them do look like they have a slight scab to them. Nate has never had diaper rash, but the daycare teacher said it didn't look like diaper rash to her, so I'm taking her word for it.
Nate had the 1st chicken pox vaccine exactly 3 weeks ago. Getting a few pox can be a side-effect of the vaccine, and so can a fever. Apparently it can take up to 20ish days for a side effect to present, so I think it's reasonable to suspect that this rash is a side effect. It's just strange that it's in the diaper area, but I guess it has to be somewhere.
So, I don't know what to do about daycare tomorrow. The info online on whether it's contagious is conflicting. I'm sure if I ask daycare they'll say not to bring him him.
Should I:
1. Call a nurse right now and see if they can tell me if he's safe for daycare tomorrow
2. Assume that he needs to stay home tomorrow & go ahead and email my coworkers
3. Assume that we'll at least need to see the doctor tomorrow & email my coworkers that I'll be out for at least part of the day
4. Send him to daycare tomorrow, call the pediatrician in the morning and hope for the best
Okay, after typing that out, I see that #1 is my logical choice for the moment... I'll let you guys know what they say.
Re: Possible chicken pox vax reaction... wwyd?
I suspect they wont tell you he is safe for daycare over the phone without seeing him in person -- they of course will want to see him, so I would either take him to daycare and schedule an appt or just schedule off for part of the day....
Have you looked at diaper rash pictures online....the yeast diaper rash is a bit different than a regular diaper rash....Alex had a yeast diaper rash one time after antibiotics and it sounds similar to what you are describing (although not near as severe as the pictures you will find online
) but it healed up with some Lotrimin AF - yep jock itch cream. Ask the pharmacist if you think Im crazy and they will tell you its standard practice to treat yeast diaper rashes.
This is one of the better rash guides I have found online:
https://www.windsorpeak.com/baby411/rashorama.html Its from the book Baby 411 - its got chicken pox in there for a comparison.
Thanks for the link, Toads. It really doesn't look like a yeast diaper rash to me. It looks more like chicken pox.
I talked to the nurse and she said he's fine to go to daycare. Even if it is a reaction to the vaccine, it's not contagious. But she doesn't think it is a reaction b/c it is limited to the diaper area. She said just to keep an eye on it and put some baking soda in his bath water & if it doesn't clear up then we should make an appt.
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If it is a reaction to the vaccine I could see how it is worse in his diaper area.
When I was in college I went to FL to visit some family. We went to the beach and my aunt did not know that my cousin was coming down with the chicken pox... accidentily she forgot to put sun screen in a fey hole opening on the back of her swim suit. There were a MILLION chicken pox in that area where my cousin ended up getting a little sun burnt. I guess they can be worse in areas where your body is warmer.
I hope a little baking soda helps clear things up!
could it be Roseola? DD had a fever that fluctuated (low during the day, spiked to 102-104 at night) and then after the fever ended, she got a rash on her belly. No other symptoms. Here are some photos: https://emileandrachel.blogspot.com/2009/05/roseola-virus.html
EIther way, I hope it clears up soon for him and he feels better!
FYI - this probably isn't it... but if it is....
My DS had a reaction after a round of Amoxicillan and the MMR + Chicken Pox. His fever went to 105 & his rash started in his diaper area - it stayed worse there, and started looking like chicken pox for the first 24 hours - but after 24 hours, it spread and the 'bumps' spread out like a bullseye. Then, he would get new ones and they all did the same thing - spread out over time. It was an extremely itchy/burning rash & if it gets similar to something like this - mention Erythema Multiforme to them. It took us 3 doc trips and then an ER trip with the fever at 105 to figure it out.
It is not contagious... it is a reaction. He would be too miserable for daycare. I'm not saying any of this to worry you - but to inform you b/c it's not common & I'd rather give you the info and it be wrong than have you go through what we did to find out.
You could also email me if this ended up being the case.
scott and briana at hotmail dot com
diaper rash can have raised vesicles like chicken pox. Chicken pox normally are in different stages (meaning some will be more flat and others more developed). Is the whole area red (more likely with diaper rash)? If it's just a "dew drop on a rose petal" it's the chicken pox (that's the classic medical description)
Either way, I hope it clears up soon!
Breezy- Thanks for the info. It's not freaking me out, it's nice to know that it's something I should keep an eye on.
Bobs- There really isn't any other redness, just the bumps. They are smaller bumps than what I associate with diaper rash, but like I said...he's never really had a diaper rash, so I dont know what I'm looking for there.
Racey- I guess it could be Roseola too. I hadn't thought of that. Hmm...
So he went to daycare this morning and I talked to the AM teacher who said that she thought that it was just irritation from a blow-out yesterday. She was really surprised that the PM teacher thought it looked like pox. But I told her I had called the doctor's office just to be sure and they weren't concerned. I'm just going to keep an eye on it, I guess! Weird!
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