My son has strep- AGAIN!

[Mermaid02]

My 10 year old had strep in July- September-January and again as of yesterday. I took him in last week and had him cultured and he was negative. Started coughing Friday and took him yesterday afternoon and it's positive. Thankfully it's vacation week so he isn't missing school but he's catching this bug pretty regularly now.

 

[golfgal]

DD had strep pretty much for an entire year. They finally took out her tonsils and she hasn't had it since, 7 years later. Have they treated everyone in the family, including your dog if you have one. Someone could be a carrier and keep reinfecting your DS (that person/dog would not be sick though).

 

[iloveboardwalk]

Maybe the antibiotics he receives is not totally killing the strep and he is not so much "catching it agan" but experiencing flare ups of the same infection over and over.

Frankly, when he's done with the current course of antibiotics, I would bring him to the doctor and have him re-cultured to make sure the infection is gone.

The other possibility is that someone else in the family is a carrier and does not experience any symtoms (sp?) This happened with my kids. My son kept getting strep about every 6-8 weeks. It turns out that my daughter was a carrier and was giving it to him all the time. I had them both on antibiotics at the last flare up and haven't had a problem since.

Good luck, strep is a nasty little bug. Your poor baby.

 

[Micca]

Good advice here. Strep is some miserable stuff, I hope he feels better soon.

 

[Mermaid02]

DD was cultured yesterday too because she's sick- but she's negative. I had my tonsils out in 1986 after having strep over and over again and I've only had it twice since then so I don't think it's me.... maybe dh or the dog. Will the vet culture the dog? I will have Jack redone after this course of antibiotics (Amoxicillin-great big horse pills) but I know he didn't have it last week so he did clear up after last time.

 

[poohandwendy]

DD was cultured yesterday too because she's sick- but she's negative. I had my tonsils out in 1986 after having strep over and over again and I've only had it twice since then so I don't think it's me.... maybe dh or the dog. Will the vet culture the dog? I will have Jack redone after this course of antibiotics (Amoxicillin-great big horse pills) but I know he didn't have it last week so he did clear up after last time.

I am also wondering if he needs his tonsils removed. General, the ENT guy I talked to about it treats it the same way as recurrent ear infections. If they reach a certain amount in a certain period of time (can't recall how many in a year), they go with big guns antibiotics for about a month to make sure it isn't a problem with the same infection never going away. Then wait a month or two, if it happens again the tonsils gotta go.

 

[disneysnowflake]

I feel so bad for your son.

My younger son used to get strep several times during the school year.
I never had strep until then. DS would get strep, then I'd get it.
Strep is really very painful. We'd get so sick.

My younger son is in a cyber charter school now and hasn't had strep since enrolling. This is his second year. Since he hasn't had strep, neither have I.

The doctors didn't know what to do for the frequent strep. It was so often I could smell strep on his breath. Terrible.

I hope your son feels better.

 

[tkd lisa]

My DD went through this when she was almost 4 (way back in the late 90s!). But hers went into scarlet fever every time! She stayed on antibiotics from New Years day to late March (when we finally got the tonsils out). She hasn't had a positive strep test since then.

I'd push hard to ask the doctor to keep your DS on a preventative dose of antibiotics, and if the strep pushes back through that, push hard for the tonsilectomy.

 

[dizneenut]

My DS went through that a few years ago. Had strep a couple times a month, and even had mono & strep a few weeks after being on a round of antibiotics. He had his tonsils and adanoids (sp?) taken out and hasn't had strep since.

 

[mickeyminnie]

there are 20+ strains of strept, each one unique and previous infection with one doesn't confer immunity to another. I had strept for years and years as a child, every winter a couple times at least. Now I rarely if ever get it, so that childhood immunity has come in useful.

 

[Tinks]

I am also wondering if he needs his tonsils removed. General, the ENT guy I talked to about it treats it the same way as recurrent ear infections. If they reach a certain amount in a certain period of time (can't recall how many in a year), they go with big guns antibiotics for about a month to make sure it isn't a problem with the same infection never going away. Then wait a month or two, if it happens again the tonsils gotta go.

Yes, this is what my pediatrician told me about my son's recurrent infections: if he has 4 or more in one year, he should consider removing his tonsils. We did have his tonsils taken out and viola! He has been SO much better. Talk it over with your doctor or an ENT. Hope he feels better!

 

[meresandwillsmom]

The other possibility is that someone else in the family is a carrier and does not experience any symtoms (sp?) This happened with my kids. My son kept getting strep about every 6-8 weeks. It turns out that my daughter was a carrier and was giving it to him all the time. I had them both on antibiotics at the last flare up and haven't had a problem since.

Good luck, strep is a nasty little bug. Your poor baby.

This is what happened with us. My dd was the carrier but both she and my ds would get it. He more often. Took both sets of tonsils out at the same time and we haven't had strep since. This was 3 yrs ago when dd was 8 and ds was 5.

 

[Green Tea]

One of my children had recurrent strept infections also. Turns out his friend was a carrier. The friend had HIS tonsils out and my child never got it again.

But, during the repeated infections he took the oral medicine. After a number of courses of that the physician sent him to the hospital for 2 injections of an im antibiotic. That did wipe out all remaining traces for a while.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Is this just the rapid test? My youngest will always test negative on the rapid and then it will grow out to Strep. Of course by then she has Scarlet Fever.

Perhaps you can do a blood work up and test in a different way? Or treat it differently.
Try and pinpoint if he is getting reinfected or it is not going away.