March 4, 2008
Aches and Pains
Question from Beaufort, South Carolina, USA:
My daughter has been on a pump for nearly seven years and has had pretty good results. Her A1c has never been over 7.6. She had strep throat about a month ago which was successfully treated with antibiotics. Ever since then, she has complained off and on about a backache. My mother-in-law thought my daughter might have a problem with her kidneys. She visits her pediatric endocrinologist every three months and is checked yearly for protein in the urine and it has always been negative. Do you have any ideas about the backaches? Our endocrinologist is over two hours away so I can’t just take her in for a check-up as it’s an all day affair in which my husband and I must take the day off from work and pull the kids out of school, etc. What do you think I should do? I’m not sure if I should be worried about this.
Answer:
There are occasional complications from strep throat that can involved the kidney. I would encourage you to get her in to see her pediatrician — not necessarily her endocrinologist — for this problem. She likely would benefit from a thorough history and physical examination and a screening urine test.
MSB
