children's emergency room?

[Liltx]

Maybe someone from the area can answer this. Which is the best hospital emergency room close to Disney? Is there a children's hospital? Dd has a large hemangioma over her soft spot that has been know to bleed (actually only once before). It is like cutting a large vein (blood everywhere that won't clot). Looks like someone has been shot, pretty scary. Anyway better to be prepared. Would it be better to drive or call an ambulance to get out of a park? I'll post on the disabilities board too.

TIA

Monica

 

[wdwdvcdad]

DO NOT GO TO CELEBRATION HOSPITAL!!!!!!!!!

last year, daughter got strep throat. It was a 6 hour wait. No one seemed to give a flying fig about anything. My wife is a nurse, so we know what to expect in hospitals. The place was a disgrace.

 

[sweet maxine]

Good morning!

Years ago, my oldest daughter became very ill with appendicitis. We took her to the Sand Lake Hospital after a referral from a nearby medi clinic. The staff was very nice and she was taken care of in a swift manner. She had emergency surgery soon after we arrived at the ER. This has been about 10 years ago, so I have no recent experience, but maybe someone else does.

Good luck with your search.

 

[campingcorgi]

Ask you pediatrician. Maybe s/he would know which is the best choice.

 

[MouseClubMom]

Sand Lake Hospital is wonderful but if you are really concerned about getting a PEDIATRIC ER then you will have to go all the way into downtown Orlando to Arnold Palmer. I think in an emergency situation when EMS is called they will do their best to accomodate your hospital request IF they can do so without jeopardizing your child's health by traveling much further to a different hospital.

Good Luck and lets hope you dont need to find out!

MCMom

 

[weregoingtodw]

To answer your other part of the question, I'd absolutely ask that an ambulance be called in an instance like that, esp. if she is younger, as hemangiomas can bleed very quickly (as you know!). You don't want to be sitting there wasting precious time in traffic - and Orlando has lots of it, not to mention trying to figure your way around a strange town. I'd call the ambulance and worry about fighting the insurance company later.

 

[2angelsinheaven]

Ambulance all the way. Do not risk getting stuck in WDW/Orlando traffic, I've had it take 45-50 mins to get from WDW to Universal in stand still traffic on 1-4. I do recomend Arnold Palmer though, wonderful hospital. Call 911 and if she needs that they will make sure she gets there. Question... how easy would this happen, rough play, getting bumped on the head, etc? If so maybe you would consider a GAC (Guest Assistance Card) to allow her to wait in a special area so she is not in a line where people can be pushy. How old is she? If she is small enough a stroller might be a good idea to keep her safe from accidents.

 

[Liltx]

2angelsinheaven,

It's not too easy to hurt it. Yes, bumping it hard or knocking into something would cause it to bleed but since it is right on top of her head it isn't that likely. She is sort of sheltered though as she has never been to daycare and such. I actually caused it last time when I hit it brushing her very long hair. I felt terrible but no long term harm was done and it doesn't hurt her at all. Kind of weird but there are no nerve endings. She is 13 months so the threat of brain bleeds are are almost over as her soft spot is almost closed. We are hoping it will start it's involution soon and be gone when she starts school but it doesn't show through the long hair when I put a clip in it. If I don't many other kids are concerned about her "boo boo". We feel very blessed that this is our biggest worry.

Thanks to everyone, esp. about the traffic info!

Monica

 

[DisneyTeacher]

I can't help you with the hospitals but by all means call for EMS, time is so important when your child is bleeding. Come up with a plan and stick it in the back of your mind and enjoy your trip.

I know how scary this is, my son has a hemangioma, too. He is now 6 and the scary bleeding part is behind us, however, I remember it clearly. My DS's is rather large and would bleed almost daily for almost a year. Twenty+ surgeries and lots of time and my DS is happy healthy 6 year old. I also felt very blessed, hemangiomas go away over time.

 

[Liltx]

Disneyteacher,

How did your son's do on a plane? Our pedi said there it a chance the pressure could cause it to bleed. Last time we flew she was only 2 months old so it wasn't big yet (raised). I'm really not too worried, I mean, I don't see much difference between the mall or park and disney as far as opportunities for problems.

Thank goodness we won't have to have surgery. I can't imagine what you went through. We will probably only have one more MRI at 18 months and then we are done.

When did his start to go away? Hers seems to still be growing. Two other kids her age that we know have already turned skin color but they aren't on thier heads and probably not deep.

Monica

 

[DisneyTeacher]

I am sorry I can't help you with the flying since we didn't try it with our son. Due to the size of the hemagioma and the heavy bleeding we didn't get too far from his dermatologist and our local children's hospital. Other than staying with in a few hours of his doctor we did normal activities with him.

My son's hemangioma is starting to get that skin color to it but it is a very slow process for him. His is pretty big (picture about half a tennis ball) and very deep. For him it took a few months on prednisone to slow the growth phase starting when he was 7 months, we didn't have a choice since it was growing so fast it was bleeding heavily almost daily. It grew for about 11 months before it seemed to slow and then stop growing.

We were thinking by this time (he turned 6 yesterday) it would be mostly gone but it isn't. Looking at it, I would guess it is about half way gone. He has a lot of scaring due to the rapid growth/breaking open and surgeries so his will never have a smooth skin look w/o plastic surgery.

My son has 2 other hemangiomas that have almost gone away, one internal and another much smaller external one--pencil eraser size. It was nice to see these go away, it gives me hope for the other much larger one.

Hang in there, you have the hard part behind you--it only gets better from here.

 

[mikesluss]

I know how scary a bleeding hemangioma can be
Our Dd 16 months old has one about the size of a bottle cap under her left eye and has had it rupture one time when she pulled the kitchen chair over it her grandfather a plastic surgeon is very against us having anything done to have it removed which is kind of confusing but according to the journals the best course of medicine is no medicine at all the time she did split it open the only thing they did was apply pressure and put a butterfly bandage on it which made it look even worse but my fil said it might be a good thing that it did burst because most often it spells the end for this hope any information helps im sorry im rambling but i have never seen any post about this and it is kind of nice to know there are other parents out there how do you deal with the questions from nosy adults kids i dont mind because they dont know any better

 

[Liltx]

Thanks for all the personal exp. you guys have shared. DD's is about the size of a nickel but looks more like a bouncey ball it is so raised. It is also cavernous but hasn't grown too deep so far. Other people don't bother us because most people are just curious. I worry more about the people who don't ask what they must think? The kids are always worried that she is hurt and I tell them that her "boo, boo" doesn't hurt her and let them touch it if they want. You'd be surprised how many take me up on the offer. The only major stares we get are at the pool because when her hair is wet the mangie sticks way up. When it did bleed they put pressure then applied those liquid stitches and of course did another MRI to see that it didn't bleed into her brain. I am going to call the pedi before we leave and see what to do in case it does bleed on the plane. Thanks again.

Monica

 

[undertheradar]

To get a good idea about what medical options are available in the area, why not contact Give Kids The World? Explain what your medical concerns are and see if they can provide the medical knowledge that you need. Due to special organization that GKTW is, I would think that they could provide the best information pertaining to possible medical emergencies in the LBV and Orlando area.

 

[Sandy Feet]

I read this thread last night and my thoughts are with you all. My experience was so minor in comparison..it seems silly remembering how I was when our dd had a hemangioma on her back. It appeared when she was about 3 months, we thought someone had picked her up roughly. Now after reading your posts I realise how lucky we were that it was such a small one and did not have any complications. It was about the size of half a golf ball and slowly disappeared. Living on a small Caribbean island I was very stressed out about it though, even though we have a wonderful doctor here. He was the only one who knew what it was and really took good care of us. He sent us to Sick Kids hospital in Toronto for a consultation with a pediatric plastic surgeon, who was so kind. When I first told my dad about dd's hemangioma. He thought I'd said she had..oh forgotten the word..a type of cancer...and he couldn't sleep all that night he was so distraught. It wasn't until we spoke on the phone later the next day was I able to clarify it for him.

 

[OntFamily]

If you are worried about the cost of an ambulance, don't. If you are in need of an ambulance while on Disney property, there is no charge. Reedy Creek EMS does not charge Disney guests for use of emergency services.

 

[MomlovesDad]

I hate to sound so "un-serious" but this is SUCH a great thread! My dd also has one on the under side of her lower arm, about the size of a golfball and it is now recessed. She's 12. It still is blue in color though, and I just wanted to share how much fun she's having with it. We never told anyone it was a "boo-boo", just that it was her birthmark. Most replied, "OH - cool!" But about 3 years ago, she started telling people who noticed it and asked about it that she had been bitten by a shark while in Florida. She has had the BEST time with this! Just pulled it on someone else today. She can really get them going, but she always tells them the truth before going too long. She can't maintain her composure - she laughs so hard! So, just an idea for some of you with older kids who have this. A positive view of something that otherwise could make kids self-conscious.

This is really great info to know regarding hospitals, and especially the free ambulance service!
MomlovesDad

 

[mikesluss]

hoping for some insight
Has anyone who's children have hemangiomas been to wdw I was just wondering how the Characters or Castmembers reacted to your children We try not to make a big deal "which it isn't ", But I kinda don't want anyone making a big deal out of my darling daughter even though she is the most beautiful thing in the world also Ive never thought of the airplane rides effect on the hemangioma but I guess we'll find out in dec

 

[JessetheCowgirl]

Hmm, this is very interesting to me. Our experience was completely different, so I thought I would share (apologies to the OP--this is off topic)

My DS's hemangioma appeared on his left temple when he was one week old. It did bleed occasionally, but at age 2 months when it was about quarter sized and beginning to be raised, we consulted with a plastic surgeon.

Even though he and our pedi felt it would involute on its own, the concern was that it was near the eye and growth could cause distortion of the skin surrounding the eye. That would require plastic surgery later to correct.

So, we started laser treatment (no nerve endings--no pain) and cortisone. It was completely gone after 5 laser treatments every 4-6 weeks.

Just wanted to mention another noninvasive option to those of you faced with this. The laser treatment is most effective when started early, and we would have done nothing if the hemangioma were not on his face.

And to mikesluss---the CM's and characters are used to seeing all sorts of disabilities imagineable, and I believe they would never call attention to something like that. Don't worry--in that respect I believe Disney is a class-act!

To the OP, definitely discuss with your pediatrician what to do. He may provide you with butterflies, etc, and I would be sure to carry a small clean towel in a sealed bag in case you needed to apply compression. And I would certainly call an ambulance before I would drive.

Enjoy your trip!