Fever of 102 and Surgery in 2 1/2 weeks

[swtpopcorn]

Deb has had a temp. of around 100-102 for the last 2 days. Her surgery is sched. for 6/5. We had to cancel her appointment for banking blood and they suggested she be fever free for 3 days before drawing.

I'm concerned about her resistance being low right before surgery, does anyone have experience with their child being sick right before surgery?

Thanks,

[nikyergen]

Mary,
I'd be getting Deb in to see her GP or Ped Doctor. You don't want t have to reschedule surgery. We had to take our daughter out of school the last three weeks prior to her surgery. Everyone was sick and just kept passing it around. She would get the crud and get rid of it, go back to school, and get sick again. Glad we did it. Then I took her to her GP and put her on a round of antibiotics to clear the crud she had.

Let us know what you find out.

'til later,
Nikki

[Mary Lou]

I agree 100% with Nikki, get her to a doctor! Remember, you not only have to worry about your daughter being healthy for surgery, but you don't want to get sick yourself and not be able to be with her after surgery. As you know, when a kid is sick, they usually share it with Mom. Better safe than sorry.

Mary Lou

[swtpopcorn]

I got her into the pediatritian's office and they did prescribe ammoxicillin.
The strept culture done at the office was negative.
They really wanted to 'just let it run its course', however I think they finally prescribed because of how afraid I was of having to postpone surgery!

She cannot continue banking her second unit of blood due to being ill, and the meds. Hopefully one unit will be enough, if not - Brother will be home from the Airforce Academy on June 4, and might just have to roll up his sleeve! Hubby who is also compatible has diabetes and cannot donate

Thanks for everything!

[nikyergen]

Mary,
Glad to see that you got Deb into the doctor. It is kind of scary when things seem to go haywire just weeks before surgery. We fought the same thing before surgery, but add severe asthma on top of it. It took Crystal twice as long to get over a cold because of her asthma. So, we ended up pulling her out of school three weeks before surgery.

I will keep you in my prayers that the remaining weeks go uneventful for you.

'til later,
Nikki

[Mary Lou]

I'm glad to hear that you didn't let up with the doctor. Keep that same attitude when your daughter is in the hospital. It will become your job to keep after the staff and make sure your daughter's pain is well managed. Remember, watch what you give her for pain/fever. We were told to stop all products containing aspirin several weeks before surgery. Good luck.

Mary Lou

[nikyergen]

We were told the same thing about Crystal. She was only allowed to have tylenol two weeks prior to surgery. She even had to cut out some of the natural ingredients she takes for glomular nephritis because they contained blood thinning ingredients.

'til later,
Nikki

[swtpopcorn]

Hi Everyone-
Just got a call from the Dr.'s office, the Lab test did show positive for strept throat. My neighbor will help us to bank the second unit of blood required - she is truely an angel!

Now, I have a new question. Before surgery did your kids get into more trouble than usual? She is being very rebellious, mouthy, etc. She has always been a good kid - I am hoping it is her way of dealing with the stress.
Any input?

[Mary Lou]

Aren't you glad you took her to the doctor!

Jamie didn't go through any rebellion, surprisingly. However, I think it is totally normal. Your daughter is about to face a surgery that no child/teen should have to face and I'm sure she is worried. Try to be patient with her. The last few days before surgery can get pretty stressful for the entire family, so be prepared for that. Does she talk to you about the surgery? If not, try to mention things from time to time, maybe your fears, concerns and your feelings so maybe she will talk to you about how she is feeling. Be careful, though, I found that Jamie didn't want to talk about her surgery all the time, but I know it helped.

Mary Lou

[jc3]

swtpopcorn
my daughter is 15 and had her surgery in nov. of this year and she was very rebellious and mouthy before her surgery. My daughter did not want the surgery, but we knew that she had to have it and we just wanted it over while she is still young and she could get on with her life. It is probably their way of dealing with their feelings of being very nervous about the surgery. That will change though after surgery. Your daughter will be relying on you for everything and you will be spending alot of time together. My daughter and i get along so great now since her surgery. So definitely a positive came out of it. Like Marylou said just be patient with her. I'm sure you're not glad that she has strep, but glad that at least you can get her some med's and she will be fine before her surgery.
good luck
jennifer

[KRIS ATKINSON]

Does this mean I only have less than 2 more months of suffering this mouthy attitude of my daughter and it will change back to just talky, without the disrespect, after surgery? I hope so. She is also excited to get the surgery over and just talked a little about how she is excited to finally have a date. Now she said she can look forward to feeling better after all the pain ends long after surgery. She is interested in hopefully being able to get enough correction to feel comfortable without her brace after surgery, someday. I hope she is not one of the kids who only gets a small improvement, just to keep it from getting worse. But, I'd rather the doctor not push the spine too far and risk paralysis, than go for a pretty back. Final exams are tomorrow and she is bouncing off the walls tonight instead of studying. I think she knows what she knows by now and will just bounce all evening until she goes to bed. Tomorrow noon, no more school for my kids for this summer! Maybe they will keep up with their chores now? Yeah, right. Kris

[susannajon]

Hi Kris,

Unfortunately surgery might cure her curve, but it won't cure puberty. You're stuck with the teenager until she grows out of it naturally. Believe it or not, she might be spooky nice to you right after surgery, and you might welcome it as a return to normal when she starts mouthing off again.

Seriously though, I have found that not only has this experience brought my daughter and I closer together, she seems to have matured quite a bit. She's still a mouthy teen, but she's more likely to come to me after cooling off, and say. "Sorry mom. Touch of PMS."