March 28, 2001
Other Illnesses, Other Medications
Question from Bloomington, Illinois, USA:
My daughter is 16 and has had diabetes for 12 years. Today she was diagnosed with mononucleosis. The doctor told us that he normally treats this with steroids for 5 days. He is somewhat reluctant to treat because it will cause her blood sugar to go higher. He wants us to help decide what to do. Would it be preferable to forgo the steroid treatment and let her get better over time? The doctor says the steroids will help her feel better quicker, but is it worth fighting the high blood sugars?
Answer:
Steroids are not a typical treatment for mononucleosis unless the tonsils are markedly enlarged and she is having difficulty swallowing. I do not routinely treat mononucleosis with steroids. It is an illness that is best treated with patience and time rather than medications. If a child has diabetes, adding steroids will likely make her diabetes more difficult to manage without too added benefit for the mononucleosis.
I would, of course, defer my opinion regarding this to your physician’s judgement.
MSB
