From warts to chickenpox, our family GP gives you the lowdown on children’s illnesses
A. Rotavirus is a common virus, which is spread when hands aren’t washed properly after using the loo. The main symptoms are usually mild vomiting and diarrhoea, lasting only a few days. Occasionally a child may become dehydrated and need oral rehydration treatment, so see your GP if the symptoms are prolonged or severe. Otherwise, the best thing to do is keep offering your child frequent sips of water or milk.
Once he stops vomiting, slowly introduce bland foods and avoid fruit juice and fizzy drinks until diarrhoea has stopped. Keep your child away from others for 48 hours after the last bout of diarrhoea or vomiting, and in future, take special care hand washing at toilet time.
While getting cold doesn’t increase the likelihood of catching a cold virus, it does mean symptoms are more likely to develop. That’s because when your temperature lowers, the blood vessels in your nose constrict, reducing the number of infection-fighting cells in your nose.
There’s increasing evidence to show that children who catch certain infections in early life are less likely to suffer from allergic problems such as hayfever and asthma when they’re older. The theory is that if your child’s immune system is exposed to infections early on it ‘learns’ to react.
A lot of ear infections are actually caused by a virus, and viruses will not respond to antibiotics. In fact, in most cases (about 80%), ear infections will get better within a few days without any treatment. So discuss with your GP whether your child needs antibiotics immediately or if they advise waiting a few days to see if it clears up before any treatment, antibiotics or otherwise.
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