13abc.com: Breaking News, Weather and SportsWhat's Going Around: Pneumonia; severe sore throat

What's Going Around: Pneumonia; severe sore throat

A couple of potentially very serious illnesses are showing up right now at one area pediatrician's office.  13abc's Susan Ross Wells checks "What's Going Around."

Pediatrician Dr. R.W. Mills says two illnesses in particular are of great concern.

 "Probably more pneumonia this year than we've ever seen, i mean its been amazing," he says. 

The doctor says it begins as a virus, with the standard cough and runny nose.. but doesn't go away.

 "These kids are coming in after a week and still having cough.  When you really get worried is when they have high fever, chest pain, shortness of breath.. and look sick in spite of the fact that its been a week already," he says.

 We met four year old Reece during our visit to the doctor's office. 

 "She's been coughing like crazy.. ok. and then, um, wheezing," says her mother.

A check up from Dr. Mills helps nail down what's going on.

"Alright sweetheart, can You show Dr. mills your tongue?  Can you open up real big? Atta girl. Very good."

 Thankfully, Reece doesn't have pneumonia... but the doctor says its a bronchitis-type chest infection that will need treatment.  Dr. Mills says the children with walking pneumonia or secondary bacterial pneumonias need to get to the doctor right away.  The other big thing he's seeing is severe sore throats in adolescents.

"We look in there and they've got these big huge tonsils with pus all over the tonsils, a lot of these are not strep," says the doctor.  "They're like viruses, or mono, or mono-like viruses, what we call the cousin of mono."

He says most get better on their own within a week, but..

 "The ones we worry about are the ones that progress and don't get better.  We've seen some of those kids develop abscesses or deep neck infections, abscess in the tonsil itself, or an abscess, a collection of infection, behind the tonsil or in the back of the throat," says the doctor.

Dr. Mills says there are some clues that your child may have developed one of these serious infections.

 "A couple tell tale signs: if they start complaining of neck pain and they're having a hard time turning their head. if their voice changes and they get a muffled, they call it a hot potato quality to their voice.. if they have trouble opening their mouth."

Dr. Mills says these deep throat abscesses can be extremely serious,  even life threatening.  He says these kids will need a scan of their neck to confirm whether there's an abscess and if so, will need antibiotic treatment. 

On a side note: Dr. Mills said he treated some of the children who got sick in that norovirus outbreak last week.  The good news there, he says, is that virus runs its course quickly.  That's a look at "What's Going Around."