Mystery diagnosis - OT ('s cousin)

[Guest guest]

Hi -wanted to share something about my nephew who just turned 14 years old

and loves me more than his other aunts (sorry, had to add that, but it's

true!).

Hunter got sick in July - his leg swelled up and was really red. His doctor

sent him to the hospital to be admitted. They refused to admit him, doctor

was furious and told my sister to take him to WVU's hosptial. They admitted

him and kept him for 8 days. They thought he had cellulitis, then

vasculitis, then MRSA from being there - never did figure it out. They put

in a pick line and sent him home because the leg was no longer swollen. He

is home a few days and the other leg swells and turns red. Back to the

hospital for 6 days. He also has unexplained fevers in the late afternoons,

anemia, joint pain and swelling and some of his blood work is not normal.

My nephew, god love him, really was ticked at all the doctors who came in

and could 't figure out what was wrong with him. He told them (I was there

and about died laughing) " You all just keep me here because I have good

insurance and you can make money off me " . Anyway, he gets his pick line out

on Monday, he's still feeling lousy and is really angry that his summer is

ruined and he can't come to my house, afterall, I am his favorite aunt. My

sister took him to the rheumatologist who said that his ANA test was

only1:40 and he didn't see a need for Hunter to come back. One of Hunter's

doctors (I think the infectious disease one) was at a conference last

weekend and staffed Hunter's case and no one had an answer to what is wrong

with him.

Ok, now the INSURANCE company called my sister today. The woman introduced

herself as Hunter's insurance case manager and advised my sister to take

Hunter to s Hopkins to be seen by a pediatric rheumatologist or a

pediatric infectious disease doctor. She said she could take him to

Pittsburgh, but Hunter has a 1 Million dollar cap on his insurance and it

would be better just to take him to JH. She said it has to be preapproved -

and she will do that. My sister only has to get a doctor to make the

referral. My sister was trying to get ahold of a specialist, I told her the

heck with them, get his regular doctor to make the referral. Now we are

wondering if the insurance reviewers saw something that the doctors may have

overlooked?

Good news (for Hunter anyway), they will be spending the night here and Tim

or I will drive them to Baltimore. Bad news for Aunt , he wants to

cook up some of his deer steaks for me