Post Strep Glomerulonephritis

June 15, 2009 · Posted in Kids Health and Safety · 3 Comments

Did you know that the strep virus has a large number of strains, and pretty harmful ones at that? I didn’t, but my family found out the hard way!

My 4-year old son had been sick for roughly a week with a stomach bug, causing vomiting with no fever. Of course, we made sure he did not get dehydrated by giving him small amounts of water and apple juice or Gatorade. We also stuck with the BRAT diet of Bananas, Rice, Apples and Toast. We got past it and things seemed ok.

After he recovered, his face looked different…but we couldn’t place what the difference was. We thought perhaps he was tired from all the sickness the week before.

He got home from pre-school one day and in a voice that sounded excited and curious, he said “Mommy, my pee is orange”. Hmmm, could he have eaten something in pre-school that did this? They did have a party that day, so maybe the cake frosting did this? He wasn’t in any discomfort or pain at all. It sounded a bit like a bladder or urinary tract infection to me.

We started to “inspect” him all over while giving him a bath that night. His belly was distended, almost looking like a slightly pregnant belly. Again, he was happy, cheery, playful and in no pain.

He went to sleep like normal and in the morning I took him to the doctor’s office. They did a urine test and found his protein level to be very high. They sent us directly to the ER. We spent the next seven hours in the emergency room, waiting to meet with the Nephrologist, and unsure of exactly what was going on. At this point he was more obviously swollen and his urine looked like ice tea. Very concerning to say the least.

We were sent home and told to come back the following afternoon to go over some of the blood tests and another urinalysis.

He woke up with his right eye almost swollen shut. Still as cheery as ever and more annoyed by the fact that he couldn’t completely open his eye.

At the doctor’s office, we received some unnerving news. They weren’t sure what this was, but it was affecting his kidneys, causing the blood in his urine and the retaining of fluid. They scheduled him for a KIDNEY BIOPSY…Oh My Goodness! This is serious!

We are sent home, and my husband and I (stupidly) begin googling his syptoms, checking WebMD.com and finding a list of possible diagnoses from leukemia to a simple infection. Of course, what do we automatically think but the worse case scenario.

We don’t quite make it past the weekend as his symptoms worsen. His weight has now gone up 8 pounds in less than a week. He looks awful (still feels great though) and his urine is still reddish-brown. We call the doctor on call and are sent directly to Boston Children’s Hospital on a Sunday. He is immediately admitted due to blood pressure concerns now. We spend three days in the hospital while they try to stop the fluid retention and figure things out. He is put on a reduced fluid diet of only 20 ounces a day, including any fruit or other food containing fluid. He is also put on a diet of no salt and reduced sodium to help.

We are sent home, but readmitted two days later for the biopsy. The word “biopsy” scares the ^%$^# out of me. My husband and I felt so out of control and scared, I cannot even put it into words.

His final diagnosis…post strep glomerulonephritis. It is frightening…there is a strain of the strep virus that actually can impact the kidneys in some children. It is a fluke. You can carry this strain of strep and not have any symptoms, but certain children can come into contact with it and end up in the hospital. Left untreated for too long and it can actually lead to the need for a kidney transplant.

There are many many strains of strep most commonly affecting your throat and skin, however, in more serious cases can affect blood, heart, brain, spinal cord, intestinal tract, bladder, liver and KIDNEYS.

Our little boy was exposed to strep and showed no initial symptoms, such as a soar throat. His stomach virus was unrelated (strangely enough) but may have lowered his immune system. His prognosis is GREAT. He will follow with a Nephrologist periodically, and may have high amounts of protein in his urine for up to two years, but he has no permanent damage to his kidneys. We were fortunate.

Of course, like any virus or bacteria, the best way to avoid them is to wash your hands with soap for 20 seconds or more. Coughing and sneezing should be done into your arm and not into your hands. As adults, we can attempt to control what we are contracting and spreading to others. I know it gets a bit tougher with our kids, especially while they are in school. But, we can still teach them how important it is to wash our hands and not share drinks and other items that have been in other’s mouths.