If you're sending your child to day care or school for the first time this fall, there are a few things you should know about the possibility of them getting sick.
First is that they will get sick, likely quite frequently. Second is not to fret too much. Thanks to modern medicine, vaccines mean we don't have to worry much about a lot of the once common childhood illnesses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced last week, for instance, that chickenpox has declined by 80 percent since 2000 because of vaccines.
But there are still a number of common childhood sicknesses for which there are not medical means of prevention. It won't be long before you learn this firsthand, so it helps to be prepared.
Dr. Lisa Smith, a pediatrician at St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center, said young children who stay at home will get sick on average about six times a year, while those in day care might get sick twice as often.
The good news is that all these illnesses pay off with a more robust immune system for the school years. But whether you send your children to day care or not, it all evens out eventually. By the time they're 8 years old, said Dr. Ada Fenick, an assistant professor of pediatrics at Yale, day-care kids and stay-at-home kids will have had about the same number of illness.
Colds and stomach flus are the most common, and they spread fast. Here are a few others to watch out for.
>>Hand, foot and mouth disease: First thing to know is that it's completely unrelated to hoof and mouth disease, so that's a relief. That said, it's not a picnic. The most obvious symptom are blisters on the palms of hands, soles of feet and around the mouth. They can also get inside the mouth and in the throat, which makes eating and drinking painful. For symptom relief, doctors recommend salt-water mouth rinses.
>>Fifth disease: Another common illness with a disconcerting name, fifth disease is essentially a mild rash. It's also known as parvovirus B19 and because of the characteristic red rash, "slapped cheek syndrome." The good thing is that most people who get it become immune to it. Its name derives from a time when doctors listed the seven rash-associated diseases children were expected to get.
Before you even realize your child is sick, they've probably already spread it to others. By the time the rash appears, Smith said, they're no longer contagious. The rash, which normally appears on the arms and legs and has a lacy appearance, can last from two to 39 days and may itch, according to WebMD. You'll be more bothered by it than your child.
Like hand, foot and mouth disease, adults rarely get fifth disease because were infected with it as children. "But if you haven't had it and you're pregnant that could be more serious," Fenick said, adding that it can transmitted to the fetus.
>>Scarlet fever: Once scarlet fever was a common causes of death among children. With antibiotics, now it usually means a few days at home with a rash. Smith said it's "basically a strep throat with an extra rash."
>>Impetigo: It's a highly contagious bacterial skin infection that causes fluid-filled sores. They can show up anywhere, but most commonly on the face, hands and arms. Go to a doctor, get antibiotics and it should clear up in a few days.
>>Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV): "This really bothers younger babies and asthmatics," Smith said. "They get a runny nose and this very wheezy cough that can cause a lot of problems." A preventive drug called Synagis can help reduce the risk of getting it. Some believe there's a connection between contracting RSV and asthma later in life, Smith said, but there's no scientific evidence of this.
For a lot of these ailments, there's no antibiotics, so getting over them is simply a matter of toughing it out. But there are ways to comfort your children. Motrin, Tylenol or Advil are good for a fever. Many doctors recommend against aspirin, as it brings the risk of Reye's Syndrome, a rare but often deadly disease. For cough and sore throat, a teaspoon of honey works for children over one year of age. Benadryl helps with the itchiness of the rashes.
Good hygiene can go a long way to reducing the risk of getting these diseases.
"One thing is to make sure to teach [children] to wash their hands," Fenick said. And when they do get sick, she said, make sure they're no longer contagious before sending them back to day care or school. If they still have a fever or just look very uncomfortable, she said, keep them home.