PSA

So Matt and I ran into our first "what the heck is this?" moment as parents and I thought we would share. I know there are a lot of my friends who read my blog every so often and thought if we could give you a heads up you could be in the know as well. Rowan got these little raised bumps awhile ago that looked at first like bug bites. They were slightly red when they first appeared. She got one by her diaper line and two on her legs. After 2 weeks or so when they hadn't gone away I started getting suspicious that they weren't bites. They turned more skin colored over the 2 weeks and started looking almost like warts. They didn't seem to bother her. I tried "popping" one just to see and nothing popped and it just ticked her off. Then one appeared on her back and a few more on her legs, right around the time the one by her diaper line disappeared. They had tiny indentions in the middle of the bumps and almost a dark little dot right in the center. By then I was really curious and sure that these weren't bites. I texted our doctor friend Ingrid, googled wart like bumps and called our pediatrician. Then once I had an idea of what we were dealing with I took these pictures and brought them to work. I got a resounding yes from 3 doctors, our fellow and 2 other nurses that it was what I suspected. Rowan has Molluscum. It is a common skin condition caused by a virus. The bumps can vary in size and number but it can take the body up to a year or so to get rid of the virus completely. Until the body fights it off, these bumps will come and go appearing and healing on their own. They say if they bother the kid they can try topical treatments but all the meds are really harsh. The neonatologist I work with said she looked into them when her kid had the same thing and they were similar to chemo drugs and she steered away from putting that on her son's skin. It is best to just let it run its course. I was told to not let her share towels or anything damp with other kids and if one does pop, that is the only time it is contagious. So far I don't think Rowan's have popped, they all just kinda get reabsorbed and disappear. I was surprised how many of my co-workers said their kids had also had this and there is even a care card on Children's Mercy's website about it. It cracks me up that something so "common" is so foreign to me. Such is parenting I guess. So anyway, if you notice your kiddo developing bumps that don't quickly go away, this may be something to keep in mind. Here are the pics of what it looks like on Ro. And that is the end of your Public Service Announcement, have a happy Tuesday!