A new meaning to "Piston Cup"

E-man, as you may know, has been super sick this fall: H1N1, strep, funky bacterial infections, pink eye...the list goes on. His current issue, however, is much more serious. As a reaction to his body's reaction to his recent bought with strep, he has developed something called Henoch-Schonlein Purpura (HSP). Henoch-Schonlein purpura is a form of blood vessel inflammation or vasculitis. HSP affects the small vessels called capillaries in the skin and frequently the kidneys. HSP results in skin rash associated with joint inflammation (arthritis) and sometimes cramping pain in the abdomen.

HSP causes skin rash, pain in the abdomen, and joint inflammation (arthritis). The rash of skin lesions appears in gravity-dependent areas, such as the legs. The joints most frequently affected with pain and swelling are the ankles and the knees. Inflammation of the blood vessels in the kidneys can cause blood and/or protein in the urine. (All medical explaination taken from this site.)

E-man is continuing his normal schedule right now. We want this to be as minimal an interruption in his life as possible. Because of the slight but possible side effect of kidney failure, he will have UAs and a lot of them. He will have UAs twice this week, then once a week for the next six weeks, then one a month for the next six months, and then once a year for the rest of ???? Another side effect: random brusies.

E-man is taking this all really well. At night, his legs hurt more and the swelling is worst. In the morning, he is fine. You wouldn't know he was sick...as long as he was wearing pants, not shorts.

Repeat: We are good. E is getting the care he needs and chances of any negative side effects are tiny. He loves to show people his purple nodes (rash) and bruises. What a boy!

PS - If you don't get the title, think Mater in Cars: "You did what in your cup?!"