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Looks Tired And Pale. Having Sore And Painful Throat. Have Enlarged Lymph Nodes In Neck. Any Cure?
Question: 8 year old son looks constantly tired and pale, have noticed his energy levels has decreased over last few weeks and he has become quite irritable and generally not himself. he also complains of having a sore throat and pains in his sides especially the left rib area and legs/knees. he is eating ok and and drinking fluids ok the only other thing ive picked up on is that his nose is constantly congested and his breath has a foul odour. Gp has done bloods but fbc and glucose result marked as satisfactory?he has quite a few enlarged lymph nodes in neck.
Dear XXXXXXX
Your son's entire history and your detail of his symptoms and findings suggest that he may be suffering from a viral illness known as infectious mononucleosis. This is a very common viral illness that causes not only a sore throat, but also fever, weakness, body aches and glands in the neck. It sometimes lasts for weeks or even a month or more. Doctors normally ask for a FBC and some special tests to detect, suspect and confirm the diagnosis. Treatment is symptomatic, as there are no specific drugs or anti-viral medicines for this illness. Recovery is a rule.
His oral foul smell seems to be unrelated to the body illness, though it could be due to his not taking care of his oral hygiene on account of the weakness and so on. Yo u should open his mouth and carefully examine the gums, tongue, teeth and the inside of the cheeks to see if there are small ulcers, red areas or other abnormal findings; if so, a visit to his dentist is advisable. In the meantime, you could use an oral disinfectant (gargles, for example) to help reduce the bad smell.
I hope this helps you to guide his further treatment.
With warm regards and wishes for his quick recovery,
Dr. Taher
Your son's entire history and your detail of his symptoms and findings suggest that he may be suffering from a viral illness known as infectious mononucleosis. This is a very common viral illness that causes not only a sore throat, but also fever, weakness, body aches and glands in the neck. It sometimes lasts for weeks or even a month or more. Doctors normally ask for a FBC and some special tests to detect, suspect and confirm the diagnosis. Treatment is symptomatic, as there are no specific drugs or anti-viral medicines for this illness. Recovery is a rule.
His oral foul smell seems to be unrelated to the body illness, though it could be due to his not taking care of his oral hygiene on account of the weakness and so on. Yo u should open his mouth and carefully examine the gums, tongue, teeth and the inside of the cheeks to see if there are small ulcers, red areas or other abnormal findings; if so, a visit to his dentist is advisable. In the meantime, you could use an oral disinfectant (gargles, for example) to help reduce the bad smell.
I hope this helps you to guide his further treatment.
With warm regards and wishes for his quick recovery,
Dr. Taher
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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