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A few days ago… 7-year-old Pebbles developed little bumps on her feet and ankles…
Kathleen Nelson, Professor of Pediatrics, then examines the back of Pebble’s legs, “And I’m feeling it here on your leg as well,” she says.
“Her mom initially thought it was flea bites but it didn’t itch,” adds Dr. Nelson later.
Another symptom: A painful stomach ache…
“I know it was painful because she was crying,” says Pebble’s mother Yashica Pullom. Dr. Nelson asks, “O-K, was she doubled over?” “Yes,” replies Mrs. Pullom, “She had to turn to go to the bathroom and vomiting and she hadn’t been eating so she didn’t have an appetite.”
The final clue was a trace of blood in her urine.
“From what I can see by looking at her, she has a condition called Henoch Schonlein Purpura,” says Dr. Nelson.
Henoch Schonlein Purpura… H-S-P. An inflammation of blood vessels. In fact, the bumps are little pockets of blood.
Doctors suspect it’s caused by an abnormal reaction of the immune system.
A reaction to what exactly, no one knows.
And while there’s no cure…
“The good news is that generally children recover from this without any long term consequences,” says Dr. Nelson, “The bad news is that she might have the rash and blood in the urine off and on over the next several months.”
Until the swelling goes away, doctors recommend Tylenol if pebbles has any pain.
For the stomach ache?
“I would just go real easy with what you feed her,” says Dr. Nelson, “Mild stuff. Lot’s of liquids, things that go down easy, O-K?”
“We anticipate that Pebbles will be fine,” says Dr. Nelson. “But her urine might not look normal for a few months. And she might break out with spots like this over the next several weeks to months.”
“Bye bye Pebbles, says Dr. Nelson, as Pebbles and her mom leave the emergency ward. |
