
Last week, Tiny was poorly. At the start of the week she had a fever and a sore throat, so we kept her dosed up with Calpol and Ibuprofen. On Wednesday night, we took her to the out of hours doctors, when she developed a purple dot rash on her legs, which didn’t fade when pressed with a glass. The doctor said he hadn’t seen a rash quite like it before, but it wasn’t a meningitis rash, as it was slightly raised.
We went home and continued the Calpol and Neurofen routine. The temperature was relieved in time for her first day at nursery on Thursday.
On Friday however, she went downhill. I picked her up from nursery in floods of tears. She’d been crying for two hours and nobody knew what was wrong. Thankfully, five minutes after leaving nursery, she fell asleep in the pushchair. When she woke up, it was a different story. She screamed and wailed in pain. Any mother knows the difference between a pain-cry and any other kind of cry. Tiny has never been much of a cry-baby. None of my children have. This cry was relentless and her sad little eyes were full of tears. It was heart-breaking. At first she didn’t want to put any weight on her legs. Then once she had, she refused to bend her legs to sit. Her left knee was swollen and much bigger than the right. Her left foot was stone cold, whilst her right foot was warm. She was shaking, but there was no fever. As I stroked her back to comfort her, I felt a lump next to her spine. A big lump. I panicked.
Very frightened, I telephoned 111. My doctors had shut for the weekend and I didn’t know what was wrong. They told me she needed to be seen by a doctor within two hours, but as the out of hours hadn’t opened yet, she’d have to go straight to A&E.
Getting to A&E was very distressing. Picking Tiny up made her scream even louder. Her back hurt. Sitting her in her car seat hurt her leg. She was distraught. By time we arrived, she had been screaming for an hour and a half without stopping. We were the first people in A&E. We sat there for 4 hours. We saw a triage nurse, but there were no doctors available. After 4 hours, we got moved to the out of hours department (at the back of the queue), so that the A&E could tick on their stat sheet that they had dealt with the patient within their 4 hour time constraint! When we left A&E, there were 8 children waiting to be seen. All in pain. In 4 hours, not a single child had been seen. Adults with minor injuries from a trauma incident, who were walking around eating, were being prioritised over a little boy with blood pouring out of his head and a little girl who could barely breathe. I was horrified.
In out of hours, I could feel hot angry tears pricking the back of my eyes. My poor baby was in so much pain and I was so scared for her, not knowing what was wrong. We got seen within ten minutes. I was livid about A&E. The out of hours doctor was horrified and embarrassed. He referred Tiny for hospital admission to the paediatric ward immediately.
On the ward, Tiny was weighed, given more pain relief, examined PROPERLY and given a bed. I lay on the bed with her, cuddling her until she fell asleep. We had a traumatic time trying to get a cannula into her tiny little arm. She screamed, panicked and thrashed her arms, legs, back and head. There were four nurses holding her down whilst I tried to cuddle her. The doctor was taking far too long trying to get the needle in. I was getting upset seeing such terror in my toddlers eyes. After three attempts and three puncture marks in Tiny’s hand, they stopped and said they’d try again later. Whilst I knew they needed blood samples, I was so relieved they stopped hurting her.
When later came, I was firm. I couldn’t have my baby that distraught again. She hates being restrained. It’s not the right way to go about it. I told them to line up the needle and put it in quickly and carefully whilst she was asleep. I’d sit next to her and stroke her hair. A nurse on standby to steady her hand if she woke up, but nobody was to restrain her or pin her down. My way worked. I know my little girl and this was the best way for her. She opened her eyes and she cried, but she looked into mine, held my hand and stayed calm. The cannula was in within seconds and she was back in my arms having a soothing cuddle.
After a night in hospital, Tiny then had her first Xray to make sure it was just fluid on her knee and nothing worse. Then an orthapod examined her to check there was no infection inside the knee. He was satisfied that there wasn’t. On regular pain relief, she perked up and had a whale of a time in Gloucester Royal Hospital’s fantastic playroom!
So what was the diagnosis?
Tiny has a rare disorder called Henoch Schonlein Purpura (HSP). It was caused by a throat virus, which she still has, and which caused her fever earlier in the week. HSP was developed as a result of the virus. It is an autoimmune disorder, which causes the body to attack it’s own blood vessels. This attack causes a rash which bleeds in spots under the skin (the reason they don’t fade under a glass) and it causes painful swelling of a limb, usually a leg. In Tiny’s case her knee. It is thought that the lump on her back was also fluid caused by swelling of blood vessels. It will take up to six weeks for Tiny to recover from this illness. There is no telling how long she will be in pain for, within this time period.
Hospitals have a very strict follow-up protocol for patients with Henoch Schonlein Purpura as it is vital to make sure that the blood vessels within the kidneys have not been permanently damaged. Therefore Tiny will have weekly follow-up appointments for the next six months. In extremely rare cases, HSP can cause kidney failure. I really hope that doesn’t happen to Tiny.
She is now home with her twin, who HATED being separated from her. We made a nurse cry when Fluffy came to visit us in hospital, because they both got so upset saying goodbye to each other. They were one each side of a glass panelled door, reaching for each other and screaming. It was devastating. They have a twin bond so strong it is beyond all comprehension. They really struggled with being apart for 24 hours.
We are home now. Tiny is well when the pain relief is working and goes downhill extremely fast if it wears off and first thing in the mornings. HSP does not run in families, is not able to be “caught” and is rare. The chances of Fluffy or Bunny getting it too, are extremely slim. The girls can still go to nursery and twins club. We just have to be mindful that Tiny can’t walk as far and gets tired quickly.
Who would have thought a throat virus can cause your leg to swell up?!
I remember that feeling well when my daughter had to be restrained for a canula to go in, and it is not just heartbreaking but distressing for both parents and child. Am glad they discovered what the problem was, but 4 hours is just ridiculous. That walking adults can get seen to first is just unacceptable in my eyes 🙁 Hope she continues to improve xx
Stephs Two Girls recently posted..What Do You Do?
Oh gosh! How traumatic for you all….Poor Tiny! I am so glad she is on the mend now xx
Kim Carberry recently posted..Little Hearts, Big Love – Stories from the heart!
Poor Tiny! What a horrific weekend for you all. I am disgusted with the way you were treated at A&E. I hope Tiny feels better soon and keeping fingers crossed there has been no permanent damage to her kidneys. x
Sarah MumofThree World recently posted..GCSE options
oh what a weekend for you all. Hope she is soon on the mend. My gang have rubbish veins for cannulas too.
Emma recently posted..Dino Tales ipad app review and competition. #win
Awwww poor little girl. I hope she gets well soon. Mustve been terrifying for you.
What a dreadful experience you had. My son contracted HSP when he was about 6. However, we had fabulous treatment at Basingstoke. I got an out of hours appointment within 10 minutes of calling (like Tiny he had that “meningitis” style rash all over his legs and back). He was then taken straight up to the paediatric ward and diagnosed within the hour. Back home after a couple of hours of observation. He was tired for a couple of weeks, but has fully recovered and is now a strapping healthy teenager.
All the best for Tiny’s recovery.
I had this as a child, but at the time not much was known about it and I was put onto pencillion daily for nine years. You can imagine what that did to my immune system!! They found that there were certain foods which could cause a similar reaction in me, so I had to avoid E101 and E102 (yellow and orange food dyes), to this day I still won’t eat them! I think it’s why I have a strong aversion to the colour orange. She will be ok, but as an adult it might be an idea to keep an eye on her anti-inflammatory markers, my ESR has always been incredibly high, nearly twice what it should be.
TheBoyandMe recently posted..Vax Dual Power Carpet Cleaner (Review)
so sorry to hear this Emna. I’d never heard of this before and find it disgraceful the way A&E treated you. To be honest I think the out of hours Dr should have acted too. Sending s child home with a nasty rash not knowing it’s cause shouldn’t happen. Presuming they put it down to a virus? Glad she’s on the mend now & the girls are reunited together.
Candace recently posted..My Sunday Photo (8 February 2015)
oh bless you all, what a terrifying experience. I really hope it clears up soon and the pain eases.
Mrs TeePot recently posted..Home
Oh gosh, what an awful ordeal for you all! I am so glad that Tiny is home now and doing better, but what a worry for you. And I cannot believe how long you had to wait in A&E, that is appalling!! Here’s hoping Tiny recovers well over the coming weeks x
Amanda recently posted..Finding (and Keeping) Confidence whilst Job Seeking
I can’t believe what you went through in A&E! Surely they could see your little one needed to be seen urgently?! I’m so glad she has started to perk up now though, and fingers crossed her kidneys get the all clear soon <3
Stephanie recently posted..Nesting in pregnancy: Am I going too crazy too soon?!
Oh gosh how terrifying – thank you for sharing this #PoCoLo
Mummy Fever recently posted..Money saving tips for families: part five
What nightmare! I can’t believe how cumbersome it was for you to be seen! That is just unacceptable.
I hope Tiny makes a quick and full recovery.
Monika @mumonthebrink recently posted..Friday footprint challenge: buy local
Why do these things always happen at the weekend??
What an awful awful thing to have to go through as a family!! I am glad she is home now and hopefully the checkups over the coming months will all give the all clear xx #PoCoLo
Katy {What Katy Said} recently posted..Dressing the Girls for Spring/Summer
Oh no the poor wee pet! That must have been so scary for all of you. What a nightmare having to wait for so long too. Our gp sent my wee man up to hospital last year and we were in a&e for 7 hours in total, waiting to be seen then waiting for tests etc! Hope she is feeling better soon x
Bloggermummylauren recently posted..The School Trip Meltdown
So sorry to hear this. It must have been very scary for all of you. I hope she’s on the mend now. Thanks for linking up the #BinkyLinky
Emily recently posted..Parents Half Term Survival Guide
That must’ve been so scary for you all Emma. Bless her, I hope that she is on the mend now. Thank you for linking to #PoCoLo x
Verily Victoria Vocalises recently posted..Prose for Thought. Thursday 19th February 2015.
My 6yo son was just diagnosed with HSP. He sounds a lot like your daughter. He doesn’t have much of a rash. But he has painful joints and swellings all over his body. He has lumps on his back too, and one on the back of his head. The doctor said that lumps not over joints are not part of HSP, so it’s good to read your blog and see your daughter had that too.