How is mono diagnosed? Most of the time the disease is diagnosed by its symptoms and can be confirmed by blood tests. One common test is called the Monospot test. This can be performed at your doctor's office.

How is it treated? There is no specific drug treatment for mono. Because it is a viral illness, antibiotics are not helpful. For severe disease, your doctor may prescribe a short course of steroids or give you a stronger pain medicine to relieve the symptoms. The most important thing you can do is to drink plenty of fluids--like milkshakes, cold drinks or warm chicken broth-and get plenty of rest. You may want to take Tylenol or Advil for the pain. For a sore throat, gargle with salt water or suck hard candy or frozen desserts. Avoid citrus fruits. Take a daily multivitamin pill until your appetite returns to normal, and you don't need to stay in bed; it won't shorten the course of the illness or reduce symptoms. However, slow down some until you no longer have a fever.

What are the complications of mono? Mono does usually resolve completely, but there are a few complications I would like to mention here. First, up to 80-90 percent of people will develop a rash when treated with penicillin. This usually starts 5 to 10 days after the drug is begun and does not represent an allergy to penicillin. The second important complication is rupture of the spleen. This is rare, but could be life-threatening. Considering the spleen's abundant blood supply, rupture can cause significant bleeding in a short amount of time. Symptoms of rupture include abdominal pain on the left side, pallor, queasiness, or weakness.

How fast you can return to the physical activity? The timing to return to sports activities requires special considerations and will be determined by your doctor individually based on the illness severity, degree of spleen enlargement and the nature of the sport. As a general guideline, be ready to take it easy at least 3-4 weeks after the infection.

- Dr. Marat Plotkin

(Dr. Marat Plotkin is at HealthPoint Pediatrics, 105 Greencastle Road, Tyrone, 770-631-1040.)

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