Prevalence of Childhood Dermatological Conditions Throughout early childhood and as the immune systems of children continue to develop and subsequently strengthen, they become more prone to viral and infectious diseases and conditions overall. Common childhood dermatological conditions have a misperception that only the physical sign of the disease can be used to diagnose it and allow treatment to resolve the issue overall. In the 20th and 21st centuries, in contrary to this, it has been proven that a number of associated symptoms aligned with skin rashes are linked to such viral and infectious diseases as scarlet fever, chicken pox and the mumps (Johnson, 2016). The rash type in the provided scenario is widespread and not small or spotty in nature. The color of the rash is normally a bright pink red and which changes over time to a purple color as the fragmentation of the rash and the lesion distribution changes and becomes dryer (Davis, 2016). As the bodies antibodies attempt to fight the bacterial infection responsible for the rash, the rash starts to become smaller and its significance and severity decreases over time, normally a matter of days and well after the existence of other symptoms such as nausea, fever, vomiting and body aches. It is important for health professionals to analyze the rash type as this can assist them in properly diagnosing the infection. For example, in the case of chicken pox, the rash is very small, widespread and appears in the form thousands of small red dots on the skin that easily become infected and are itchy (Davis, 2016).
Differential Diagnosis for Case Scenario
In this particular case scenario, the child has been suffering from a fever for several days prior to a rash developing and spreading from their trunk to their face and upper extremities. The fever has since broken a few hours prior to the rash breaking out. These symptoms correspond most closely with those of Scarlet Fever and this is the diagnosis for the chosen scenario. Scarlet fever involves a large rash that spreads throughout the child’s body and in different places and is also accompanied with a strong fever for several days preceding the rash. The rash becomes the final symptom of the bacterial infection before it can be successfully treated with strong antibiotics (Johnson, 2016). The fever will only last for several days with an incubation period of 12 hours (from the break out of the fever). Other symptoms that have been experienced by the child including nausea and vomiting can exist throughout the duration of the fever and until it starts becoming treated with sufficient antibiotics. The overall duration of scarlet fever is between 1-2 weeks, which aligns with the provided scenario.
There are other potential diagnoses for the scenario, which have been ruled out after comparison with the symptoms for scarlet fever. The first is chicken pox as it has a similar incubation period of 12 hours and includes such symptoms as fever, nausea, vomiting and the spread of an itchy rash that can at times be uncontrollable. In contrast to the symptoms provided in the scenario by the child and those of scarlet fever, the rash for chicken pox is the first noticeable symptom prior to fever breaking out (Medscape, 2016). The child in cases of chicken pox will notice a number of small bright red dots that start spreading throughout the surface of their skin and in all places. Whereas with scarlet fever, the rash is confined to one area and is widely distributed in this one area and very large. There is no evidence of small dots spreading across the child (Johnson, 2016). With chicken pox, fever commences after the rash has spread whereas in the described scenario, fever has commenced prior to the rash developing. There are also instances with chicken pox where no fever occurs and the child only experiences a rash with intense itchiness and discomfort. The other potential diagnosis, which was ruled out in this scenario was the mumps however the mumps is normally confined to one area and the size and description of the rash being experienced by the child is in contrary to the reported symptoms for the mumps in young children.
Treatment and Management Plan
It is proposed that the child should be treated for scarlet fever with extensive antibiotics. Penicillin or Amoxicillin can be prescribed for the child since scarlet fever is a bacterial infection and will quickly be treated with antibiotics (Medscape, 2016). The child should be placed on this treatment schedule for at least two weeks and until they complete their course of antibiotics to prevent the infection from reappearing as a result of lapses in treatment methods. The child should also rest and sleep for at least two weeks with limited physical activity and should also be kept well hydrated (Johnson, 2016). After a week of treatment, the child can start to walk around and engage in physical activity with slow progression towards the resumption of a normal routine. Appropriate dosages for the administration of antibiotics is one pill every 4 hours or a dosage of 2ml of antibiotics every two hours.
Summary
In summarizing the provided case scenario, it can be highlighted that such infections as scarlet fever should always be taken seriously as they have the potential to infect other areas of the body such as the function of the kidneys and liver. In more severe cases, the child can be hospitalized with further consequences.
- Davis, C. (2016). Scarlet Fever (Scarlatina). Medicine Net, Retrieved from
http://www.medicinenet.com/scarlet_fever_scarlatina/article.htm
Accessed on 30th March, 2016. - Johnson, S. (2016). Scarlet Fever. Healthline, Retrieved from
http://www.healthline.com/health/scarlet-fever#Overview1 Accessed on 30th March, 2016. - Medscape. (2016). Scarlet Fever. Medscape, Retrieved from
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1053253-overview Accessed on 30th March, 16
2016.
