First post:
Mar 15, 2009 Latest post:
Oct 13, 2012
This site has been created to keep friends and family updated about Cameron's illness.
PARENTS: Please know that this site contains graphic descriptions of Cameron's ongoing health, symptoms, and treatment. Monitor your child.
On March 4, Cameron complained of a sore throat and an upset stomach. I took him to KGH Urgent care, fully expecting him to have strep throat like half the school. He tested borderline-negative for strep, but Dr. Brindle discovered an ear infection. (Cameron rarely presents with normal symptoms for anything.) She prescribed Zythromax, as Cam is allergic to penicillin. After the first dose of the z-pack, Cam had stomach cramps. Stomach cramps and diarrhea are side effects of the medication. He continued all five days, ending on Sunday, March 8. He was back in school on Monday the 9th.
On Tuesday the 10th, I picked the kids up from school. One of his teachers, Julie Sijgers, let me know that Cameron had had a VERY difficult day, and had been in the bathroom ALL DAY. I called KGH Urgent Care and left a message for Dr. Brindle that Cameron was having a bad reaction to the medication and to please call me. No one ever returned my call.
On the way home from school, I stopped and spoke to the Pharmacist at Fred Meyer and asked about complications from Zythromax. She recommended BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce and toast) + yogurt with live bacteria. She also suggested Immodium to stop the diarrhea. One dose of Immodium—no change.
Wednesday morning at 5am, Cameron woke us calling from the bathroom. There was blood in the stool. I called the on-call doc at Dr. Guevara's office in the KGH Medical Mall. I spoke to the nurse, who paged the on-call doc for me. No return calls from the on-call doc or the practice when it opened.
At 8:10 on Wednesday morning, I called the KGH Walk-in Clinic near our house. At 8:45, when Cam was out of the bathroom, we saw Dr. Breeden. Dr. Breeden examined Cam, said that it was not appendicitis, that his bowel was soft (good), and that he had normal bowel sounds. Dr. Breeden sent us to the lab for blood and stool culture tests, and said no Immodium until we have lab results.
This morning, Saturday, I called the lab in downtown Kennewick and learned that the stool culture tests were back. I drove to the lab, picked up a copy, picked up Cameron, and drove to the Walk-In Clinic. The doc (not Breeden; Stanley), reviewed the lab results with me. All stool cultures were negative, which was good. The blood tests showed elevated cells in 6 tests, but not wildly elevated. Mostly, just over normal range. Cam is now free to take Immodium to slow down and hopefully eliminate the diarrhea. The doctor told me now that he needs to see his regular pediatrician and be seen by a pediatric gastroenterologist. (I don't believe we have one in the Tri-Cities.) He is personally recommending a colonoscopy as soon as possible. At this point, he thinks it *could* be crohn's disease, celiac disease, or possibly ulcerative colitis.
Crohn's and celiac are managed primarily by diet. He can go back to school if we can manage the diarrhea, but the colonoscopy is going to be hell for him. Right now, he *feels* fine, though his stomach hurts. We are monitoring is bowel movements (one of those "it's great to be a mom" moments!) and are trying to get into a new pediatric practice on Monday. We'll see what happens.
I cannot stand being with a group that will NOT return my phone calls. I am not a hypochondriac—I am a mom with a child that has something wrong. If they can't empathize, then I want nothing to do with them. Thank you much for all of your prayers and support. Right now, Cam needs his friends. He is not at all contagious, in case anyone is concerned about exposing their own child. He cannot go to school at this point, as the diarrhea is not controlled, and he cannot eat food that can go to school.
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