Seat scratchin'

Warning: best not to read this post while eating your tea.

Unbe-blinkin-lievable! Back at school for just three days and already Small Boy has some kind of scratchy thing.

Today, Day 3 of the term, I received a call from the school at 11 a.m. The kind office lady's first words were "Don't worry, but...". At which point I started to worry, of course. But next there followed a tale of itchiness in the pants region ("He's almost scratched his trousers off" were the exact words). Apparently Small Boy had confessed his ailment to the teaching assistant, who (discreetly I hope) duly removed him to the First Aid room. I was required to collect him as his itchness was too great to bear in class. When I went to pick him up he was sitting there happy as a sky lark, reading That Pesky Rat.

In fact, it was his second visit to First Aid already this term. On Day 2 of the term, he fell and lodged a stone in his hand, and grazed his knee ("braised" if you ask Small Girl). This was drama enough, as he refused to let me anywhere near either knee or hand. In the end I had to tear the knee plaster off in one quick swipe, in the bath, while he was looking the other way (aren't I mean?!). It was getting too soggy.

So, I reckon it's either threadworms or something fungal. Nice. Both pretty easy to treat, but tell that to a boy sitting on the stairs wriggling and writhing in his pants.

We are now following strict hygiene measures, with our own different-coloured towels, and rigorous nailbrushed hand-washing before eating. I've also washed all his bedding and soft toys (some looking a tad bedraggled now) and vacuumed everywhere, and am about to clean the bathrooms and damp-wipe the surfaces. If it is threadworms, this should keep the eggs at bay. We've all taken a dose of mebendazole too.

I was bracing myself for the next round of school bugs, but I had no idea they'd arrive this soon. Actually, if it is threadworm, he would need to have swallowed the eggs a good two to six weeks before the itching, so may have picked up the infection at the end of last term.

Anyway, we're off to the doc's on Friday for another reason and will talk about it then. Watch this space.

If you want to read more about the kind of infections that lurk in classrooms, and how to try and avoid them, I've just done a post on Ready for Ten, check it out! Great website for parents of 6-9 year olds.