Dear Parents,

A child in the Head Start classroom may have scarlet fever (a strep throat with a rash). This illness is common in young children.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR:
If your child gets scarlet fever there may be these signs:

• Sudden fever, sore throat, swollen glands, headache and stomach pain.
• Nausea and vomiting can happen if the scarlet fever is very bad.
• There can also be a very fine rash (feels like sandpaper). The rash can be on the neck, chest, in the armpit, elbow, and groin and in the inner thigh. Later on, there may be peeling of the skin on the fingertips and toes.
• The child can have a fuzzy, white tongue also.

If your child does not feel well or has any of these signs, keep him/her home and call your doctor.

HOW THE ILLNESS IS SPREAD:
Scarlet fever is spread from one person to another by sneezing or coughing. After a child has been exposed it usually takes 1 – 3 days for these signs to show.

TO PREVENT OTHER PEOPLE FROM CATCHING SCARLET FEVER:
Your child may not come back to center/social day UNTIL after a full 24 hours of medicine and no fever for a full 24 hours.

Your family must not use the same things the sick person used such as towels, glasses, dishes, silverware, etc. Be sure to wash these things with soap and hot water before using them.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
The doctor can tell if your child has scarlet fever by doing a throat culture. This is done by swabbing the throat to see what germs grow. If the test shows the germ is there, the doctor will want your child to take antibiotic medicine for a full ten days. This illness is usually not serious, but all the medicine must be given to the child so that he/she does not catch an even more serious illness.