Observation finds common childhood virus alters personality

The roseola virus came under attack today by a young mother claiming the virus altered her baby’s personality.

Eleven-month-old Maggie was diagnosed this afternoon with roseola after a phone consultation with the infant’s doctor’s office.

“She woke up Sunday morning with a fever of 103 degrees,” the mother, Helen, stated. “Tuesday morning the fever was only 100.5 but she was screaming like she was in pain so I called the doctor and got an appointment. I figured it was an ear infection and that we could get antibiotics and she would feel better. There were no visible signs of infection so they did two blood cultures on her little arms and put a catheter in to do a urinalysis. It was horrible to put her through all that when she was already so sick.”

The doctor initially diagnosed Maggie with a viral infection and recommended Tylenol for discomfort while her little body fought off the infection. Wednesday morning, Maggie’s face, chest, back, neck and bottom were covered with a rash.

“I knew that I had seen a picture of a rash similar to her’s on a poster in the doctor’s office, and I knew that it was not a heat rash. She was in so much pain, I couldn’t get her to stop screaming, so I called the doctor again,” Helen said. “I described the rash to the nurse and told her about the previous symptoms and she confidently diagnosed Maggie with roseola. Her symptoms were textbook.”

According to WebMD, “roseola (roseola infantum) is a mild illness caused by a virus. It is generally harmless and is most common in children 6 months to 2 years of age. Roseola often starts with a sudden high fever [103 F to 105 F] that lasts 2 to 3 days, although it can last up to 8 days.

“After the fever ends, a rosy-pink rash may appear over your child's entire body, starting on the torso and spreading to the face, neck, and arms… A child with roseola may appear fussy or irritable and may have a decreased appetite, but most children behave almost normally.”

Helen claims that her daughter does not “appear fussy or irritable,” but that her personality has been severely altered by the virus.

“She has not been the same little girl since she got sick,” she said, “My sweet, happy baby has screamed consistently for two days. There have been short moments of peace when she is distracted from her discomfort, but they are very short. The nurse said the rash will fade within three to four days and hopefully she will be her happy self again. I just want all of this to be over and to have my baby back.”