Back to Back Strep Throats

Did you remember to change out his toothbrush? That is the one thing that I always seem to forget to do.

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Believe it or not, my family passed it around for months before someone suggested our dog was a carrier! We took him to he vet and lo and behold, he was! He got treated and we all quit getting it.

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Even though you have already posted what happened. My twins had this issue when they were toddlers and it was literally every 2 weeks or so that they would get strep. We did end up going to an ENT on our own and had their tonsils removed (they actually came down with strep the day before surgery, only 3 weeks after their prior strep attack, and we had to delay the surgery a week. Needless to say after they tonsils came out, we have had no problems with it in 4 years with either kiddo. Good Luck!

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I used to have the same problem and my doctor suspected that my exhusband was a carrier. He was never sick, but I would get over one bout &, in a short while, begin another. He treated both of us and I haven't had strep throat since. And this was many years ago!

I saw an ENT for myself this winter for the same problem. He said that they don't really recommend taking them out until it gets to 4 times in a month or 6 times in a year. That might just be for adults, I don't know, but it's something to keep in mind. I have heard from lots of people that when kids have it done it goes really well.

if the bacteria got in any of his toys and then he played with them, he'll get strep again. we immediately switch toothbrushes after 48 hrs being on antibiotic for strep and basically strip down the house and disinfect everything
about two years ago my kids got strep 3 times back to back. strep was in their preschool and it was god awful. we all had 3 rounds of antibiotics. that is my horror strep story.

I saw one other Mom post this, but it is worth repeating. You likely have someone else, either in your family or a friend, that has step and doesn't even know it. Many people are carriers and spred strep and they don't know it -- they don't even have any simptoms. Often if there is repeat strep cases, the entire family will get tested. Once you cure the carrier of it also, then you will be good. If a friend is the carrier instead of a family member, it is a little harder to figure out though. Good Luck.

This happened to me when I was 16. I had it so many times that the doctor finally decided the only way I was going to get better was to remove my tonsils. Well the last month before I was to have the surgery I was put on Penicilin (or something like it) and was to take 3 for 10 days then take one a day till my surgery. Well guess what, I came down it strep again. I was getting it around the same time every month. Well I called my Dr. and told him and he asked me how many pills I had left and I told him. He told me that because I had been right about all the other times and that I already had the pills to take them 3 times a day for 10 days and if I ran out before the surgery then I was to call him and tell him. When the day of the surgery came around it was June of 1987 I was feeling fine. However when the Dr. came into see me the day after before he would let me go home from the hospital he told me and my mom that had it not been for the surgery I would never have gotten rid of the infection because of the deap pockets that my tonsils had. He went on to tell us that the were fully infected with strep. I was lucky that the step stayed in my tonsils and did not travel any farther.
I have gotten strep since then. I get it any time I am around someone with it. It does not matter that I do not get any where near that person I just have to be in the same room as them.
I would say take your son to see and ENT and see what they say. My reg. family dr. is who did my surgery I know that due to my mom's insurance we had to get the oppionion of the ENT, but also knew that it did not matter what he said I was tired of being sick and tired of missing school.
Good luck to you and your son.

My daughter had that last year. Started in March had four back to back strep throat and tonsillitis, ended up having her tonsils and adenoids out in July. She saw the ENT Dr and went in the next day. Found a lot of debris in both. She was in and out in a couple of hours and recovered quickly.
It sounds like you son may have to have his tonsils removed, sorry. Good Luck!

Something similar happened to my sister in Feb. She had strep, went on meds, and 2 days later had a sore throat, couldn't swallow. The dr. told her she had ' Uvulitis' Basically an infection of the Uvula, usually brought on by strep.

M.

Did you throw his toothbrush away and get a new one? That is how at one time we got back to back strep in our house.

After having strep and completing a round of anitboitics, the strep usually goes away. However, it can appear that the strep is completely gone, when actually it's still there. Many doctors will do a second throat culture after the first round of meds to be sure it's gone.

Good luck.

Sounds as if the strep treatment has weakened your son's immune system. I would focus on boosting his immune system and get him started on probiotics, if he's not already taking them. Dr. Mendolsohn, MD has some interesting information on Strep Throat and the over treatment within the system.

Go to this link: http://books.google.com/books?id=yWATg4JNQKEC&dq=how+...

Now type Strep Throat in the google search to read exerts from his book.

My daughter had strep once and we chose to not do antibiotics. We kept her comfortable, gave her plenty of fluids, had her rest and boosted her immune system with herbs and vitamins. We used homeopathy and essential oils to help her body fight the virus.

Hope your little man feels better soon. I just read Mimi's response to you. She must have been typing when I was writing to you. Dr. Mendelsohn has a section in his book on tonsils too. Just google tonsils from the book page and read the exerts to see what function tonsils have within the body. Mimi is correct that the body parts are there for a reason. As parents we need to be asking why the body isn't functioning as it should and focus our efforts on boosting the body's ability to fight infection.

Peace,
J.

Hi S.,

Looks like you got a lot of great responses and great info. I guess because it is all too fresh on my mind, I thought I'd respond too.

My almost 20 YEAR old just got over strep. He hadn't had it for many years now, but used to get it fairly often as a kid, school age. He did have his tonsils/adenoids out prior to him getting it so often so that was not our issue.
At one point our doc said that if he got it one more time in the next 6 months the whole family would have to be tested (dogs too) to see who was the carrier. Luckily, it didn't come to that.

Knowing what I do now, I agree that it was a poor immune system. We now eat much, much healthier (over the last 8-9 years) and over all the whole family is much healthier. But as 19 year old college student burning the candle on both ends, his immune system was down again.

Good Luck and in good health,

L. Krause, RN, Certified Dr. Sears L.E.A.N. Coach
www.YourKitchenCoach.net

See what the ENT says, if he has a chronic problem, he may need to have the tonsils out. Our middle child had them out at 6 and did just fine. She was eating a pb&j 4 hours later, so now you have two good experiences to draw from!

Be careful with strep. Left untreated, they can develop a very serious illness from strep that you just don't want to mess around with because it can have life time concequences. Stick with medical treatment.

M.

I know there is a number of how many strep throat cases a person has in this amount of time and they then suggest to remove the tonsils in hopes in that taking care of the issue. Kind of like if you get a lot of ear infections they suggest tube(s) for the ear(s) but take out the tonsils in hopes the body can then ward of the soar throats/strep better.

Wow! Mimi knows her stuff when it comes to alternative medicine. Not only is your son's immune system compromised, it gets worse with every antibiotic he takes. He does need to take a probiotic to restore the good bacteria that's been killed off by the antibiotics. Taking a probiotic may not be enough to help with those tonsils, though. You have at least several chiropractor-kinesiologists in KC, who can surely help your son keep his tonsils if you'd like to try that. Many times sore throats can be associated with the overgrowth of yeast/fungus, which can be caused by too many antibiotics. He may not have strep this time. Just an aside, my daughter has a friend who was missing work a lot because her son was constantly sick. My daughter told her to get the boy on probiotics. Once she did, he stopped getting sick. A good place to start would be to buy Primadophilus at the health food store.

Our son had his tonsils out right after he turned 4. Not because they were infected, but because they were so huge they had become an obstruction. We tried steroids to shrink them, but as soon as the steroid series finished, they ballooned right back up again. They were almost kissing tonsils. Once they were out, he could sleep and swallow so much better. It was totally worth it.