Diagnosis:
Every medical professional that got my overnight strep results back seemed surprised that I had such a "rare" form of strep. When I was treated for this rare form and medications decreased my symptoms and then the symptoms returned without antibiotics or steriods I knew I had found an answer for the symptoms I had been experiencing. I wanted nothing more to get my tonsils out ASAP. I began to do more research on my own and found that strep G is very rare. But, it can cause symptoms similar to lupus and cause scarlet fever. If you research scarlet fever or strep in general you will most likely be able to find that it is treatable and when treated there are no real risks. However, recurrent strep or any recurrent infection can cause longer term problems or more serious complications. I began to worry about my heart function and kidney function. I'm not sure if it was the illness or the effects of antibiotics I was on, but leading up to surgery I also had an increase in an intermittent, but very rare heart murmur and decreased urine output.
I'm still not sure when exactly I came in contact with Strep G, but mono may have decreased my immune system enough to contract it and mono also helped to mask symptoms.
A proper diagnosis also took a while due to the inability to find answers from a doctor. I truly believe keeping a diary of my symptoms, taking pictures of visible signs I experienced, and being stubborn and persistent in finding an answer may have saved my life.
While I have allergies to penicillin, amoxicillan, sulfa drugs, clindamycin, and azithromycin it made it difficult to find an antibiotic found to be effective against Strep G. Others may have recovered from a rare strep strain better than me because more effective medications were available to them. This most likely increased the uniqueness of my case. Medications that helped decrease or keep my symptoms at bay, but that did not rid me of the infections were:
- doxycycline
- levaquin
- medrol or prednisone
After unsuccessful treatment from different antibiotics it was inevitable that I needed a tonsillectomy.
I think I am having the same issue. I got diagnosed with strep G about a month ago where it was attaching my eyes and caused vision impairment. Antibiotics(Omox) treated the illness, but right now, I feel the same symptoms coming on again. My next thought is to have a tonsillectomy. How were your result?
ReplyDeleteI would speak to your doctor. How many times have you been diagnosed with Strep G? I'm almost 100% from the tonsillectomy. I stopped blogging because I thought no one was reading! About 3 weeks post op I could start to workout. I still had scabs and was still sensitive to salt, spicy, acidic, and hot foods. About 4.5-5 weeks post op I felt I could resume my normal diet without any restrictions. I haven't had a rash, fever, insane fatigue since before I went into surgery and I'm continuing to be able to work out. Recovery was definitely difficult and painful, but to finally feel healthy after the whole ordeal feels amazing!
ReplyDelete