Reese Update

Yesterday Reese's rash sort of "maintained", but the swelling of his hands, feet, knees, ears, & elbows concerned us. After asking a few friends & neighbors (who are doctors and nurses!) we decided to take Reese into the hospital to be seen. Just in case the swelling was dangerous. I was afraid Reese would be scared of going to the hospital, but he was actually excited :) I guess life is always an adventure when you're 4!

On the way to the hospital, Jeff called and said he had done some searching on the internet, & thinks Reese's symptoms match Erythema Multiformae. I kept that little kernel in the back of my head on the way to the ER...little did we know that Daddy had diagnosed Reese!

After Reese & Mommy waited for almost 2 1/2 hours in a packed ER, we were finally seen by some very nice doctors. Turns out Reese's rash is due to the Amoxocillin, but it's not simple hives. He's got erythema multiformae along with simple hives. The erythema multiformae spots are the ones with the white "target" in the middle with a red ring around the outside. Erythema multiformae can also cause joint pain, which Reese has and is one of the big reasons we went to he ER in the first place. He woke up from his nap yesterday, crying saying it hurt to walk.

Anyway-with a slightly increased Benedryl dosage to help with the itchies of the regular hives, we're just trucking through this icky stuff. Today, he's still covered in spots, and his face looks pretty rough. It's hard to capture it on camera, but he really looks like a leopard today, with all these "target" spots everywhere. Ugh, poor kid!

Here's Reese at the hospital yesterday...


He thought it was fun to sit on the bed, and a really nice ER doctor (who wanted to see Reese walk & check for balance) walked with Reese to a freezer to pick out a popsicle. Reese was very excited to eat his special "double doozie" popsicle in his bed!
Here's Reese's face today. In the picture the spots lose some color with the flash...they're really pronounced. At least we don't have to worry about first day of school issues :)