How A Pediatrician Can Help With Fifth Disease

Parents raising children want them to be as happy and healthy as possible. Unfortunately, childhood diseases may strike that cause suffering in a child and make their life harder. For instance, Fifth Disease is a mild to a serious condition that may require the help of a pediatrician to ensure that the child doesn't experience any adverse side effects.

Fifth Disease Can Affect Many Children

Many sicknesses can infect young children, including what is known as Fifth Disease. As a viral condition, this disease can occur without warning and cause a variety of different symptoms. For example, it can cause a low fever that is very uncomfortable and swollen joints that make it difficult for a child to have fun. Sometimes, Fifth Disease causes a child to stay home from school for extended periods.

Typically, though, this type of disease goes away after a week or so, but rashes may develop that can last for weeks. And some children may develop more extensive and unpredictable symptoms, which can make it very hard for them to feel comfortable and happy as individuals. As a result, it is essential for parents to understand when to take their child to a pediatrician and when their child is safe from further disease spread.

How a Pediatrician Can Help

A pediatrician can quickly diagnose Fifth Disease in a child and figure out what kind of complications that it may trigger. While viral diseases cannot be treated like bacterial ones by using an antibiotic, some medicines — such as anti-inflammation medications — may help decrease the symptoms of this disorder until it is properly out of a child's system and they are healthy and safe.

Just as importantly, they can provide a cream that can manage any itchiness triggered by the rash that many children develop with Fifth Disease. These creams can be spread by the parent or even the child, as needed, to decrease itchiness and manage a child's suffering. Often, these steps are critical for preventing the spread of the rash, which may become very persistent in some children.

Critically, a good pediatrician can also help a child with diseases that may complicate a child's recovery, such as Sickle Cell Anemia. Conditions like these often make Fifth Disease much worse, a problem that may even be potentially life-threatening. Thankfully, parents who work with a pediatrician can decrease this potential and keep their children as safe as possible from this disease.

If you have additional questions, contact a local pediatrician right away.


Share