We just got discharged from The Medical City after 6 days. My son had ATP or acute tonsillopharyngitis. I am sharing my experience and learning for fellow moms in case you suspect “tonsillitis” in your children.
Symptoms prior to hospital admission:
My 5 year old had on & off fever for 2 days. On the 3rd day, his fever reaches 40C and does not go away even after giving fever medicine aka paracetamol. Fever lasting 3 days is a reliable signal to go to the doctor.
My child also lacked energy by this time and lost his appetite.
Check up with pediatrician:
Ashton’s pediatrician diagnosed him with ATP. This was evident after inspecting the mouth and discovering enlarged red tonsils. The doctor recommended admission to administer antibiotic through IV. She found my son is also dehydrated and giving dextrose would help his condition. I don’t show panic but I am anxious and sleepless whenever my son has fever, especially when he starts to chill. Staying in the hospital was the best for both my son and I.
Confinement
Symptoms improved after 3 days of confinement, in total my son had on & off fever for 5 days. On the 4th day, his appetite improved and we wanted to go home. However, the doctor recommended late discharge to continue the antibiotic dose via IV before trying and switching to oral antibiotic. Most children vomit the oral medicine, lucky for us – Ashton likes the flavor when he tried it before being discharged.
Lessons learned
1. ATP can be caused by kids not drinking enough water, especially after eating sweets. Now, we record Ashton’s water intake everyday. It’s additional work but a good way to ensure he’s getting enough fluids in.
2. Pay closer attention to your child’s oral hygiene. I initially brush Ashton’s teeth and mouth very gently without stressing him too much. Now, I make it a point to brush his teeth very well. Including hard to reach areas even if my son resists.
3. Children of Ashton’s age is in their growing up years and need to be fed a LOT. The pedia recommended we give him rice 3 times a day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) for better health, nutrition, and resistance to diseases.
4. Be strict on sleeping time. I hesitated forcing Ashton to sleep before 10pm because it’s also our bonding and quiet time. Now, I make it a point to bring Ashton to the bedroom at 8pm and make him sleep by 9pm. This will help him become stronger and grow taller.
5. Expensive as it may sound, the pedia also recommends that kids sleep with airconditioning on. My son always has phlegm somewhere in his lungs and this was one of the solutions presented to us. Normally, we will only use AC when it is very hot. Now we have to be more frugal so Ashton can sleep better with the AC on every night.
Do you have other health tips for kids? Please share it via comments below.
