Mononucleosis: the kissing disease. The ultimate bane of teenage life. Its diagnosis (sometimes unfairly or inaccurately) guaranteed a reputation of promiscuity—which isn't always negative, depending on your point of view. However, the disease itself is definitely an overall negative experience. All energy leaves your body and you are left a useless, limp bag of hormones. You are unable to go to school or participate in sports, unable to do much of anything. As terrible as it may seem, it's a very survivable problem, with very few complications for a healthy teenager.
Ironically, teens from more affluent families are more likely to get infectious mononucleosis than teens who live in less ideal situations. As often happens, we in the Western world are too clean and careful. If children are exposed to the Epstein-Barr virus at a younger age, the infection is usually pretty tolerable, at least by comparison to teenage mononucleosis. If you are a pregnant or breast feeding young woman, things can be a bit more risky for you and your baby. Please talk to a doctor as soon as possible about Cytomegalovirus, as it can cause similar symptoms.
Mono Treatments
What is mono? How do you get mono? Infectious mononucleosis (IM) is an infection usually caused by the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Most people are exposed to the virus in childhood and become immune. You are most likely to contract mono in your late teens to early twenties. Mononucleosis is often spread via the intimate exchange of bodily fluids, which is why it has been stigmatized. It is spread by coughing, sneezing, or sharing eating utensils as well. Most people won't show symptoms for a month after infection and will be fine after a couple of weeks of bed rest.
If you suspect that you have mono, go to the doctor. Symptoms of mononucleosis include fever, serious fatigue, weakness, a sore throat, swollen lymph nodes and tonsils, a rash on your skin, spots in your soft palate, an enlarged spleen, a loss of appetite, and a headache. You should go to the doctor to make sure it's not something else. There are mono blood tests, but a physical examination may be all that is necessary. Upon confirmation, the doctor will probably give you some advice on how to ride out the illness and treat the symptoms.
Plan on spending a couple weeks resting yourself and avoiding activity. Not every case is the same, but most people who get mono aren't going to be able to do much of anything for a couple weeks. You need to let your body do its thing. Most of the time it'll clear up on its own, you just need to take it easy and make sure to drink a lot of fluids. Once the worst is over, you need to ease gradually back into your normal life. It may take a couple months for you to feel normal again.
There aren't any medications for mono, but you can treat the symptoms. As mentioned above, bed rest and ample fluid intake are the two most important things. To reduce fever and swelling, you can use over-the-counter pain relievers like acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil). Avoid using aspirin, as it can cause a potentially fatal disease called Reye's syndrome in younger people with viral infections. If you suffer severe swelling in your throat as a result of the infection, your doctor might prescribe a steroid to help resolve what is a potentially dangerous and certainly uncomfortable situation.
It takes time to recover from mono. You may also be contagious for weeks or months after the infection, so be cognizant of your physical interactions with people, and try to increase your level of sanitation. If you sneeze or cough, cover your face and wash your hands. You don't want to spread the love, so to speak. Also, be sure to avoid contact sports or interactions that may risk impacting your abdomen, as your spleen is more susceptible to rupturing during this time—and that would be bad. With any luck you'll only have to go through this once.
Chronic Mononucleosis and Other Risks
Symptoms from your bout with mononucleosis, such as fatigue, can last for months. This is normal and usually resolves itself. Some people have a relapse into the other symptoms, such as fever and swollen glands. If this persists for a long period of time without resolution (which is very rare in healthy people), it is known as chronic IM, for which there isn't really a treatment.
Ruptured spleens are another significant, albeit rare, risk. More than half of people who experience IM will have an enlarged spleen. Very rarely they will rupture due to accidental impact and even more rarely they will rupture spontaneously. The outlook is good if it is treated immediately, though occasionally they need to be surgically removed.
Non-EBV mononucleosis and diseases with similar symptoms can be a risk, if they are misdiagnosed. Cytomegalovirus is the most similar and most likely to be confused for EBV-caused IM. Toxoplasmosis and human herpes virus are some other possibilities. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) can resemble mono in its initial infection, as well, so you can clearly see that it is a good idea to talk to your doctor and verify the cause of your symptoms.
