My Medical Knowledge Goes Out the Window...

My medical knowledge goes out the window when it comes to my own self or my own family. It can pretty embarrassing. Last week Paige developed fevers, over the 104ºF. Fortunately, Paige seemed fine.  She was appropriately cranky and she tired easily.  However, I didn't really have much to reassure Megan with except to say Paige was going to be fine. There was no obvious source for her fever; no runny nose, no cough, no diarrhea etc... I took Paige to the pediatrician who also didn't find a source; no ear infection, no strep throat etc...

So Megan and I just dealt with it (Tylenol, supportive care) and after three days her fever stopped. That same day she developed a rash. Maybe it started on the face or the chest (I don't remember) but it quickly spread over her entire body.

Alright, for those of you who have been to medical school, stop for a second. I've basically given you enough information to figure this one out. If you're into details than I'd add that Paige was 23 months old at the time and she still didn't look acutely ill. The rash was bunch of non-itchy, pink spots spread over her entire body ("diffuse, non-pruritic, maculopapular, blanching lesions" for those who want a more concise description, and if you really must know, it wasn't on her palms, soles or oral mucosa.) Got it yet? It's a illness that appears frequently on board exams since it almost always presents in this stereotypical fashion.

Well, I failed to it figure it out right away, and once again, I was barely able to reassure Megan by simply repeating "she's going to be fine." Then a day later, while giving Paige a bath, I thought to myself "wow! That rash sure is covering her entire body. Fortunately, the fever is done with." At that moment, the whole thing hit me. I slapped myself on the forehead when I suddenly realized this was Roseola.

For those of you who don't know, Roseola is a self-limited viral infection; no special treatment required. You can read about it in layman's terms here. Knowing Paige had this benign illness put us all at ease, and of course, Paige is fine now.

Kinda cute, I thought. I basically had a board question running around my house.

Music Update

It's been a while since I wrote about music and I just wanted to let everyone know what I've had on heavy rotation.  Here are the mp3's:

"Rebel With the Ghost" by Sons and Daughters

Girl-fronted guitar pop notable for memorable hooks and dominant bouncy rhythms.

"Bring Y'all Back" (featuring Little Brother) by Pete Rock

Hungry for some new hip-hop.

"Graveyard Girl" by M83

Throwback to classic shoegazer pop.

"I Miss You" by Bjork

Re-appreciating a 1990s classic.

"Speed (Hardcore)" by Alpha Team

Getting excited about the Speed Racer movie.

Of course, I also updated the Muxtape

I Can Still Enjoy Disney World

This week the entire Nguyen clan (Pepe, Meme, Mary, Long, Alexander, Kaitlyn, Sarah, Megan, Paige and myself) returned from Florida after a one week trip visiting Disney World. Despite my previous cynicism about Disney (corporate and artificial), I ended up having a great time there. Having young children with me made me see the theme parks in new light. Simple attractions like Dumbo (a basic midway ride) or a playground were much more enjoyable than the big ticket rides. The kids loved the shows and parades too. Riding some rides or seeing the same show two or three times even made for a satisfying experience.

Under the guidance of my sister, we made a couple of wise choices that enhanced our enjoyment. We arrived early every day. If you're not staying on Disney property, it would normally take about three modes of transportation just to get to the Magic Kingdom (private vehicle, tram, monorail.) Arriving early got us a parking spot within walking distance of the monorail entrance. We avoided packing everything into a tram to/from the park which would have been a huge buzz-kill at the end of the day when we had four tired kids with strollers, coolers and all.

Secondly, we had a plan everyday. With Disney's massive lines that fluctuated in length depending on the time of day, it helped to do a little research and plan when to hit each attraction. We took full advantage of the Disney's Fastpass too, which at no extra cost was like getting a reservation to come back at a later hour and essentially walk to the front of the line.

Since all the children were four and under, we decided to hit Magic Kingdom during three of our days there (forgoing other parks like Epcot). That took a lot of pressure off. We knew that if we missed a major attraction we'd be back another day to see it. That went with this next strategy: we didn't try to do too much in one day. We often finished our plans by 11AM or noon, which left the afternoon for simply wandering around/ soaking in the atmosphere or letting the kids run around or repeat their favorite rides.

Anyway, enough of the Disney strategies. What I really wanted to share were the pictures so here they are:


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monday, april 21, 2008 addendum

New photos have been added to the set. These were from my father's camera from our days in the water parks.

As Good of a Place as Any

Last night, some guy drove his car into this telephone pole. It was just a few feet away from our Emergency Department. It was no laughing matter. He was seriously injured, bleeding from his liver and all. However, with the need for immediate health car, he really didn't pick a bad place for this to happen.