So my cheeks have been rosy for the last few days no matter if I was running around and playing or if I was just waking up in the morning. Mommy and daddy kept asking if I felt sick, but I felt fine. No fever, headache or anything. But then I started to get a faint rash on my upper arms and legs so they took me to the doctor. Turns out I have Erythema infectiosum or Fifth disease. It is also called Slapped cheek syndrome because of the red cheeks.
Anyway, it is nothing major and isn’t permanent so I’m good. By the time the rash is evident, the disease has run its course and I’m no longer contagious and pose no threat unless you are pregnant or have sickle cell, then there is a slight chance I could infect you. This actually kept me form going to my cousin Lily’s birthday because some pregnant women were going to be there and I didn’t want to be responsible for anything that may harm them.
So the long of the short is that I’m going to survive, but that doesn’t mean I won’t try to get a little extra sympathy from this with my folks….cough, cough….sniffle, sniffle.
BTW here some historical info on Fifth Disease….
The name “fifth disease” derives from its historical classification as the fifth of the classical childhood skin rashes or exanthems. The other common skin rashes are:
- Measles
- Scarlet fever
- Rubella
- Duke’s disease
- Erythema infectiosum
- Roseola
It was first described by Robert Willan in 1799 as “Rubeola, sine catarrho”. It was better defined by Anton Tschamer in 1889 as a rubella variant (“Ortliche Rotheln”), identified as a distinct condition in 1896 by T. Escherich, and given the name “erythema infectiosum” in 1899.
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