DETROIT, MI (WOWO) — As children return to classrooms across Indiana and the Midwest, parents are once again dealing with a familiar back-to-school problem: figuring out whether a runny nose, cough, stomachache or fever is serious enough to keep a child home. With students spending more time toget her indoors, common illnesses can spread quickly through classrooms, buses, cafeterias and extracurricular activities. Dr. Partha Nandi, writing for WXYZ-TV in Michigan, says parents can expect to see a variety of illnesses during the school year, including respiratory infections, stomach bugs, strep throat, pink eye and illnesses that cause rashes. Respiratory illnesses such as the common cold, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus, commonly known as RSV, are particularly common when children are back around larger groups of classmates. Children are exposed to more germs when they return to school, and that increased exposure can lead to more infections, particularly during the colder months when people spend more time indoors. Parents may also encounter gastrointestinal illnesses such as norovirus, which can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Strep throat can bring a severe sore throat along with swollen or painful glands in the neck. Pink eye can cause redness, burning and discharge from the eyes. Hand, foot and mouth disease is another illness parents may see, particularly among younger children, and can cause a characteristic rash. The good news is that parents can take several relatively simple steps to reduce the chances of illnesses spreading. Frequent handwashing with soap and water remains one of the most effective ways to reduce the transmission of many germs. Children should also be reminded to cover coughs and sneezes and avoid sharing drinks, utensils and water bottles. Keeping routine vaccinations current is another important part of preventing serious illness. That includes getting the recommended annual flu vaccine. But even with those precautions, children are inevitably going to get sick. The bigger question for parents is determining when a child is sick enough that staying home is the responsible choice. Not every cough or runny nose automatically means a child needs to miss school. Guidance from the Michigan Department of Education recommends keeping a child home when the child has a fever of 101 degrees or higher, has vomited two or more times, has had two or more loose or watery stools, or has respiratory symptoms that are worsening or failing to improve. Children with draining skin sores should also stay home if the sores cannot be adequately covered. For parents, those guidelines provide a practical way to distinguish between minor symptoms and conditions that warrant keeping a child away from classmates. A child who has a mild lingering cough or runny nose, for example, may not necessarily need to miss school if the child otherwise feels well enough to participate normally. When a child has had a fever, the return-to-school standard is generally at least 24 hours without a fever and without the use of fever-reducing medication. Children who have been vomiting should also be free of vomiting for at least 24 hours and able to keep food and liquids down before returning to class. For diarrhea, symptoms should be improving, with no loose stools for at least 24 hours before the child goes back to school. There is another important consideration beyond simply counting symptoms: whether the child is well enough to function in a classroom. A child should generally be able to participate in normal school activities without requiring substantially more care than school staff can reasonably provide. Parents should also remember that individual schools and local health departments may have their own illness and attendance policies. Those requirements can differ, so families should check their child’s school for specific rules. Most common childhood illnesses improve with time and supportive care. But if symptoms are not improving, parents should contact the child’s health care provider for guidance. More serious symptoms require immediate attention. If a child is having difficulty breathing, appears severely ill or is experiencing another medical emergency, parents should seek immediate medical care rather than waiting for symptoms to improve. The back-to-school season inevitably brings more exposure to germs, but parents can help limit the spread by emphasizing hand hygiene, respiratory etiquette, vaccinations and staying home when children are genuinely sick. And when in doubt, the goal is straightforward: a child should return to school when they are well enough to participate safely and comfortably — while also following the specific requirements set by their school and local health officials. The post Sick Kids and School: Doctors Explain When Parents Should Keep Children Home appeared first on WOWO News/Talk 92.3 FM and 1190 AM. ...read more read less