For those of you who don't know Charlie has a condition called hsp (Henoch-Schönlein purpura). It is an autoimmune response (most likely) to a previous virus or bacteria. It is caused when a person's immune system doesn't fight an infection like it's supposed to. Charlie started to get a rash last Friday and we thought that it was a allergic reaction to something on the farm. On Sunday the spots started turning purple, so we took him to the ER at Children's. He was such a good sport (we were up until 1pm). At Children's they had to put in an IV to take a blood sample (I cried more than he did) and they did some other tests. The staff at Children's was so great, I now know why it is one of the best hospitals for children in the US. He was discharged and we went home to get some sleep. He woke up at about 4am and his right eye was completely swollen shut, so we paged his doctor and he said that the lesions will appear all over his body and to give him some Benadryl and Ibuprofen and come into the office in the morning. Here he is with his swollen eye, still smiling:
On Tuesday, he got a really bad cough and high fever, so we went back to the doctor and they did a breathing treatment and we went to Children's outpatient to get a chest xray. They thought that he might have asthma or pneumonia on top of the hsp (are we lucky or what?). Turns out that he doesn't have pneumonia and they are not ready to diagnose him with asthma yet (keep your fingers crossed), so he must have a URI or cold.
The lesions will come and go for 4-6 weeks, and we will have to check his urine for blood/protein
over the next few months. His legs and butt are the most affected.
The spots seem to itch more than hurt, which is so good, because they look really painful. His joints, hands and feet are swollen and sore, but he is such a good patient. He is still eating and sleeping well, so we just have to ride out the spots. At this time, his doctor doesn't think that this condition is related to his other allergies. This has been such a scary experience as a parent. Seeing your child ill must be the hardest thing in the world to go through. Say a prayer for sick children and their parents. Thanks for thinking of us; we are all doing much better and hopefully Charlie's booboos will go away sooner than later (he keeps telling us that he wants them to go away :(.
