Fever, Vomitting, Leg Pain, Sore Throat, and Croup in a 4 Yo

My niece had leg pain after being sick, when she was that age, that got so bad she couldn't walk. After air lifting her to a children's hospital and running a myriad of tests they concluded she was dehydrated. After an ivy, she was fine. I would push fluids like crazy with him and watch him carefully. Sure the doctor could have done a flu test, but it's not like anything could be done about it if he had the flu, at that point. (People forget Tamiflu has to be taken the 1st 48 hours to reduce the length of symptoms, and according to their website in children it only reduces it by 1.5 days.) It sounds like he's had it for 5-6 days now, and for 3-4 days when you first took him in, so it wouldn't have done any good. Best advice is to hydrate, rest, and keep a close eye for dehydration/complications. Hope everyone feels better soon!

The leg pain also indicates flu to me. Get him tested for it and if he has flu, get him Tamiflu as soon as possible. Ask the doctor if your entire family should be on Tamiflu -- some doctors are now just putting all the siblings on it when one kid has it, knowing it will go around.

Flu is potentially dangerous for young children -- it can be very serious for them. Watch your kids, especially the baby, because infants can have grave complications. Get a real diagnosis and INSIST everyone including the baby get a flu test and Tamiflu. Even with the drug, watch the younger ones and do not hesitate to take them to the ER; flu can catch up with small children and infants swiftly.

Please do not be one of those parents who says "Oh, I don't want to bother the doctor for something like flu or a cold." This is why the doctor is there. And young children really can have serious complications of flu or croup, too.

Could be the flu. Each person is going to respond differently to it.

The vomitting could be the flu or a reaction to the medicine. To me the leg pain could be related to the flu and slight dehydration, bending over the toilet, etc. Be sure to lysol all of the hard surfaces in the house. If the baby gets worse, have him seen.

I can't believe that your doctor wouldn't swab your child's nose to test for Influenza, in the middle of a major flu season!! Take your child to urgent care and get him, your husband and yourself all swabbed! Then find a new pediatrician who pays attention to symptoms and is proactive in disease prevention.

You could also have several different viruses going through your house. Cold/flu and a stomach virus.

Ugh. I hope your household feels better soon.

I would call the DR about the legs hurting. That seems like a red flag to me. If you end up bringing him in again, ask them to test for the flu.

The leg pain sounds like the flu to me. The flu usually doesn't include the stomach, but some people vomit from taking a lot of medicine, being dehydrated, or from coughing a lot so the presence of vomiting doesn't eliminate the flu. Or it could be that he has the flu AND the stomach virus that your other kids had.

I would take him in and ask for a flu swab. That way if he does have it, the rest of you can get on Tamiflu and hopefully avoid getting sick. It won't help his symptoms at this point but at least you'll know what you're dealing with.

Hope you all feel better soon!