question/concern about the 4 yr old well visit shots

I'm hoping you guys can give me some input here. Yesterday, my girls had the well visit. They each got 3 shots in the leg. two in one leg and 1 in the other. Arwen is perfectly fine. However, last night, I started to notice that Lorien was walking kind of funny. A little later she was limping not wanting to put weight on her right leg (the one where she had one shot). This morning, the pain seems to have worsened and the leg is a bit swollen around the site of injection. Her other leg also appears a little swollen, but doesn't seem to be hurting her at all. It's only the one leg. She's very cranky today and can't seem to put ANY weight on the leg. I have had to carry her when she needs to use the bathroom or go to the table to eat. She is able to play if she sits in one place and will even seem happy and content for a bit, but she will become easily upset (although that's not highly unusual for her). I don't know if she is exaggerating a bit, but she seems to be in visible pain when she tries to walk on her leg. Dh thinks it's just a normal pain since she is fairly thin and was jabbed with a needle yesterday, but this has never happened before. I don't know if I should call the doctor or just wait it out and see what happens by tomorrow. Dh is going to run out and get some Motrin (unless Tylenol is back on the market??) to see if that helps with some of her discomfort.

What are your thoughts? Am I being overly nervous about this? Have any of you ever dealt with something like this? I thought maybe if I put a boo boo pack on it, it would help with the swelling, but Lorien won't let me near her with it.

 

My first reaction is what shots did she have? Some cause some significant muscle pain (especially tetanus). Motrin is a better bet than Tylenol because Motrin will also reduce inflammation in addition to helping with the pain. It's rare, but possible that the needle maybe nicked the bone as well if she's super thin and the nurse wasn't careful. If she starts showing any other symptoms or the pain gets increasingly worse, I'd definitely call. Hope she feels better!

 

First, I would def. do motrin over tylenol. Mine all get tender with their shots, but my DD complains a lot more with hers. She once complained of her arm hurting for almost a month. She's petite and I wonder if it's that she doesn't have as much "meat on her bones" as my other kids You could try an ice pack on the injection site and see if that helps. Did they give you a handout of what shots they gave and what to expect? Some of those are much more painful for a few days after than others.

 

My DD's recently had to get a shot of penicillin for strep throat and they did the same thing. It's never happened with any of the shots we've had previously. I called in and they said it was normal as the needle is fat and the serum is thick, so it bruises more. They were fine after one day of soreness. I would call the nurse just to make sure it's normal, but I'm the type that calls in for every question.

I bought generic Motrin and Tylenol recently. The generics aren't involved in the recall.

I hope she feels better!

 

Thanks guys,

They got the MMR (though it's a combo shot with Varicella), Varivax, and Prevner (or something like that, can't read the writing). I guess I'll just wait and see how she feels over the next couple of days. Going to give her Motrin when dh gets back with it and see if that helps. Thanks for your fast replies!

Mel

 

That happened to me when I got the MMR at that age. I couldn't walk on that leg for a couple of days. It eventually passed and there were no lingering effects, but I remember it being scary to me and my mom.

 

Meara had a reaction to MMR when she was 2. She had swelling and a large red area on her arm. Our pedi said it was very common and to give her Motrin for pain/swelling and put ice on it if she'd tolerate it. It took about a week to fully go away. But if you are concerned, call the doctor and have them evaluate it again. :hug:

 

Personally, I would call the doctor. Her not putting weight on it is concerning to me. The swelling and warmness is normal with an MMR type of shot, but the not-bearing weight would be a red-flag.

 

My DD had her 4 yr old shots last month and also had pain. She's never had a reaction to a shot, and she's usually pretty tough, but she was crying so hard on the couch from her leg hurting. She wanted an ice pack, so we gave her that and some tylenol. I kind of treated it like a sprain - RICE (rest, ice, compress and elevate)since it was muscle soreness.