My little guy has been practicing hard for upcoming contest and today he went to the Doc and he has strep. Now he started getting a sore throat Sunday and hasn't used his mouth calls since Saturday.
We have two choices.
1. Take a chance and throw them in some mouthwash and hope they are not contaminated or the mouthwash killed it.
2. Order up a whole new set. That set includes 10-15 calls that are all trimmed and broke in.
I know the safe bet is replacing them, but would the mouthwash kill it?
CW
Mouthwash will kill the germs.
Hmmm...as an RN my first response would be to replace them. I know thats a costly option but its the safest route. You will probably get several different opinions on this post, but that is mine. The Streptococcus bacteria can be a tough one to kill, and i have my doubts as to whether mouthwash could do the job. Sugarray would be a good one to get a second opinion from as he is a pediatrician. Good luck on your decision.
Quote from: StruttinGobbler3 on January 24, 2012, 10:47:00 PM
Hmmm...as an RN my first response would be to replace them. I know thats a costly option but its the safest route. You will probably get several different opinions on this post, but that is mine. The Streptococcus bacteria can be a tough one to kill, and i have my doubts as to whether mouthwash could do the job. Sugarray would be a good one to get a second opinion from as he is a pediatrician. Good luck on your decision.
Scratch what I said, and do what they say
You could always boil them. Oh wait a minute thats not going to work.
TRKYHTR
You can soak them in vinegar, the acid which is 5% should kill any germs. the only problem is the dbl. reed calls, will the fluid get in between the rubber. Iodine will work on organic germs. I would just replace them.
why wouldn't isopropyl alcohol work? i know its bad if you drink it but in small amounts is it harmful? i've been known to brush my teeth with it a baking soda.... i dunno what could live threw that.
I myself would start over. Once you've put a mouth call in your mouth bacteria growth is rapid. Keeping them in a call case with a sponge saturated with Scope (Blue) or Biotene mouth wash and stored in
refrigerator keeps bacteria way down and keeps them safe for you to use.
Using Scope (blue) or Biotene will not destroy or damage mouth call latex. It will also keep reeds from sticking.
Well, since I was picked to answer, I better get it right.
JK :TooFunny:
My thoughts are it is really up to you. My recommendation would be to replace them for the surest way to prevent recurrence. Also, though, you can boil or run your toothbrush through the dishwasher after strep as well.
So, I think the mouthwash soak and then rinse is a good thing to try as long as the alcohol content is high. Then see what happens. If he gets a recurrence, then you will have to replace them.
Raymond
Throw out the mouth calls. Saving on a few calls is not worth the chance of a strep throat recurrence.
After a couple times of getting throat infections from using calls kept from the previous season even after a mouthwash soak before using them, i would recommend trashing them. I no longer use mouth calls from year to year.
Quote from: sugarray on January 25, 2012, 08:39:55 AM
Well, since I was picked to answer, I better get it right.
JK :TooFunny:
My thoughts are it is really up to you. My recommendation would be to replace them for the surest way to prevent recurrence. Also, though, you can boil or run your toothbrush through the dishwasher after strep as well.
So, I think the mouthwash soak and then rinse is a good thing to try as long as the alcohol content is high. Then see what happens. If he gets a recurrence, then you will have to replace them.
Raymond
I'm going with the Doc!
A high alcohol content in mouth wash will distroy latex.
Quote from: catdaddy on January 25, 2012, 09:11:15 AM
Throw out the mouth calls. Saving on a few calls is not worth the chance of a strep throat recurrence.
I agree with catdaddy 100%. Much cheaper to replace the calls then to have to keep taking the young man back to the doc. Plus who cares about cost when it comes to your kids and their health. Start over and replace the calls.
bird
Quote from: bird on January 25, 2012, 11:25:51 AM
Quote from: catdaddy on January 25, 2012, 09:11:15 AM
Throw out the mouth calls. Saving on a few calls is not worth the chance of a strep throat recurrence.
I agree with catdaddy 100%. Much cheaper to replace the calls then to have to keep taking the young man back to the doc. Plus who cares about cost when it comes to your kids and their health. Start over and replace the calls.
bird
i agree with these guys i went the last month without rinseing off the new hooks mouth calls i got from scott and almost had the sickness beat and on a sunday morning i got out the same calls and run them and guess what 2 days later i think i got pneumonia and am still trying to get rid of it.I KNOW BETTER THAN THAT,TO ALL,RINSE YOUR CALLS OFF !!!!!
Quote from: drenalinld on January 25, 2012, 09:13:39 AM
After a couple times of getting throat infections from using calls kept from the previous season even after a mouthwash soak before using them, i would recommend trashing them. I no longer use mouth calls from year to year.
I change mouth calls week to week depending upon use. Always rinse them with listerine mouth wash at the end of the day too. I got a terrible sore throat one year that cut into my week's vacation. Saving $6 or $7 on a mouth call isn't worth getting sick over.
Thing to remember here is if your kid is on antibiotics, and you continue to use the same calls, seems to me there is a decent chance that the bacteria on the call could develop resistance to the antibiotic.
That is a very bad thing....
Went ahead and called Scott today and got a few ordered up. It don't take long to get them to where you want them, and after missing two days of school its worth it to replace them.
:icon_thumright:
CW
Good choice!
Wouldn't chance a doctor visit, I'd replace them. Once you replace them then give them soak after each use to keep this from happening again. When I finish running a mouth call, I soak it for about 15 minutes in mouth wash and water. About a 75/25 mixture. It is important to soak them before they start to dry and the reeds stick. Once the 15 minutes is up, I rinse mine under cold water then shake out as much water as possible. Use to get some kind of flu/cold before each spring was over but since I have started taking better care of my mouth calls things are lookin' up. Will it work for everyone? Don't know...but it works for me.
Sure puts a much more pleasant taste in your mouth at daybreak!
This is an important subject. I'm thinking, and hoping the experts can verify, that bacteria generally needs a moist environment to survive, and that pathogenic organisms survive under refrigeration (in fact, biologic specimens are routinely refrigerated prior to testing), which means chucking moist calls into the fridge is just asking for a problem. I'm wondering if a thorough drying (prop multiple reeds apart) won't eliminate much of the problem? Will bacteria live on a totally dry surface for an extended period of time?
Glad I read this post, gives me something to think about when i pull out my mouth calls soon.
The other thing I have to say is that a doctors visit for most starts in a $30 office co pay ad then a co pay on prescriptions. Depending on how many another 10 -20 bucks if you have decent coverage, my thought is throw away the old calls so you can skip the recurrent doctors visit , keep you kid healthy and then use the money saved from doctor/rx and buy calls instead a much better use of that money, $50 bucks should get most of those calls back