She was diagnosed with her third ear infection on thursday ( 3 days ago) her symptoms then were cranky, temp 101, runny nose and a loose cought she was started on amoxicillin because it had worked on the other 2 ear infections.
friday she had all the same symptoms but her cough sounded drier to me and more frequent. friday evening and thru the night I noticed
her breathing rate to be rapid 45 breaths/minute. she didn't look like she was in distress just a fast rate. it was hard to see the fast breathing when she was moving around and playing. it could only be seen when she was at rest.
i brought her back to ped on sat morning because of this and because her temp was 103. he changed her antibiotic to omnicef. he listened to her lungs and said he hears some congestion but nothing serious. however, she was crying in the examing room and very restless. i don't know how he could have heard anything. i am a nurse and i could not hear lung sounds if a patient is crying and moving around. oh, also, her oxygen level was good, 97%. so now it's sunday morning and she is still kind of asleep. she feels warm . she slept all night because he told me to give her zyrtec to dry her up .
i am just worried that she may have pneiumoneia. he told me the fast resp rate is from the congestion. can any of you tell me about your toddler having pneumonia ? any of your toddlers have a fast resp rate just from a cold???
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I would take her back, and maybe look into getting the ear tubes. I so did not want to do it. But all the medications and ear infections I had to. I am so happy I did. No ear infections for over a month. :) No meds!
Well, I haven't seen this so often with toddlers, but I have often seen a fast resp. rate with infants who have a fever, and I've been told by my Dr. that they are "blowing the fever off".
Have you have her checked for acid reflux. My son's had ear infections every winter since he was born and they last ALL winter. I started doing some research and found these:
http://www.livestrong.com/article/35231-symptoms-gerd-yea...
http://heartburn.about.com/od/infantschildrenandreflux/a/...
Hope it helps...
If your Nurse's sense is telling you pneumonia - why not ask the Dr to order a chest xray? It's not hard to write and will out you in peace of mind to know for sure.
Wow, you've just explained in detail the last 5 months of my son's life... he's had wicked ear infections since the beginning of December! Stick with the childrens Motrin every 6 hours for that fever... that's why your baby is acting the way she is. Cuddle her against your chest to keep her up (so the stuff can drain out of her head/ears). Give her a 'vapor bath' bubble bath, that will help the head stuff and help her little body relax and feel better. That omnicef was the 3rd antibiotic we tried and the ONLY one that worked. Keep giving her yogurt because that stuff is tough on baby tummies! They told me if the omnicef didn't work, they were going to send me to and ENT to talk about getting tubes in my sons ears... but thankfully, he's much better now and back to his naughty self!! I hope your little one feels better... it really sounds like this is all due to the fever/ear infection/ head junk!
When my toddler has had an ear infection followed by the odd breathing she had broncuolistis (spelling) and had to get on a breathing machine we did at home...when It got REALLY bad, we had to put her on steroids to protect her lungs
I don't really have an answer to your question directly. My kids never got much in the way of coughs and we only had a few cases of bronchitis ever and no asthma in my family. But I've cared for children for 25 years and know that the vast majority of them come through these things just fine. Even if your child had pnemonia, it usually responds to antibiotics fine right? And 3 infections at 22 months is extremely normal. So many kids out there have 20 or more by now and tubes and surgeries.
You are doing a good job and I always took my kids in over every little thing too just to prevent the big "If ONLY". Since you are a nurse you probably have a stethoscope at home right?
I've noticed that my nursing student moms worry a LOT more than the average moms. I think that being in the profession makes some moms a little paranoid and I don't blame you at all. But try and relax. Just hold her tight and pray for her.
Don't hesitate to take her to the ER if it comes to it. My friend took her baby to the Dr and same thing, they said she was clear in her lungs, just had a cough. But she kept coughing so my friend went ahead and took her to the ER and she did have pneumonia. I say go with your mommy guy, and you are a nurse to boot. Sorry your baby isn't feeling well, hope she is better soon.
Have you tried taking her to the chiropractor??? That would help with the ear infections AND the colds! (So hopefully it would clear it up before you have to worry about pneumonia!_) We have had really good luck with taking our kids in for a lot of things. See if you can find one that takes specialized training in children.
My advice is completely biased because my dd was recently diagnosed with asthma BUT since you asked...! I would consider the possibility that your child might need a nebulizer treatment or possibly steroids. My dd would have a high resp rate with her asthma episodes, as well as a frequent, dry cough. During her naps i'd listen to her lungs (I"m a nurse too) and sometimes she'd sound crackly, sometimes wheezy. Pedi said that asthmatic kids can have crackles with their asthma attacks, that it doesn't necessarily mean they have pneumonia. She usually does sound wet and only very occasionally does she have true wheezes. She also usually has normal O2 sats at the office, even when she is coughing uncontrollably. COnsider getting a second opinion or going directly to the ER. THe chest XRay will likely be difficult but it will put your mind at ease to have answers.
Fast breathing rates can be a result of fever, virus, bronchitis or pneumonia, or asthma/reactive airways. Even if your babe has a bacterial pneumonia, she is already on an antibiotic that would cover most causes of it. If the fast breathing appears to be labored or if you hear wheezing, you might want to see if they can give you an inhaler w/ spacer or a nebulizer to see if that will help with reactive airways. My son is only 16 months and I have used my albuterol with a spacer for him a couple times (don't get worked up...I'm a PA...I know what I'm doing). Please do not consider this medical advice and if your mom-tuition tells you to go back to see your peds...please do. Oh...and there are often times when I try to peek in ears or listen to lung sounds and can't hear or see a thing with my squirmy worked up kiddo (I worked with older kids and adults primarily)...but the peds can see or hear it. They spend all day every day evaluating crying/fussing/squirming kids and can get quite good at distinguishing the cries from lung sounds!
I agree with the asthma answer
My son had pneumonia just before his first birthday.
We had to have him x-rayed to check for fluid in his lungs - he did.
He ended up on antibiotics and albuterol (we had to use a nebulizer - that was nerve wracking he'd cry so much when ever I had to put that mask on him but we had to do it).
Though he never got so bad that he had to be in the hospital in an oxygen tent.
There are SO many things that can go on with their ears, nose, throat and lungs and not be pneumonia. Allergies, bronchitis, croup, tonsils, adenoids, etc.
Try to relax as best you can and watch for / deal with symptoms as they come up. You'll both get through this.
I'd take her in to the local childrens' emergency care for a chest x-ray - could be that she just needs a few nebulizer treatments. But you're obviously not satisfied with the diagnosis, and I don't blame you. I think it's good to be proactive and explore all angles to be sure the doctor didn't miss anything - the doctor is human and mistakes happen.
Updated
I'd take her in to the local childrens' emergency care for a chest x-ray - could be that she just needs a few nebulizer treatments. But you're obviously not satisfied with the diagnosis, and I don't blame you. I think it's good to be proactive and explore all angles to be sure the doctor didn't miss anything - the doctor is human and mistakes happen.
I'm not a nurse, so bear with me. I am, however, a mom who had a two-year old with pneumonia a few years ago. He also had a cough, fever that would break and then come back, but, he was also very lathargic (sp) and wouldn't eat, play, drink, etc. He basically just wanted to sit on my lap and be held or cuddled. I also remember that the only way my ped was willing to make a positive diagnosis of pneumonia was after having a chest x-ray done. Our ped wanted him hospitalized, because he was becoming dehydrated. He gave us 24 hours to get a wet diper or he wanted to admit him. My husband and I took turns feeding our son pedialyte with a medicine dropper for hours to keep him out of the hospital. Can you ask your ped for a chest x-ray to rule out pneumonia? Good luck, I know how hard it is to watch your little love so sick.
you can have a fast resp rate from a high temp also. I would keep a good eye on her because it can turn into pneumonia over night that was what I was told happened to my daughter. She started with croup and cough never went away after 3 months of cough (dry not wet) and 6 dr appts she ended up with triple lope pneumonia and in hospital for 5 days at 1yrs old. Definately keep watching. I took her to dr on a tues, thurs and then ER on sat. Good luck and hopefully nothing more comes of the cough.
My son didn't end up having pneumonia, but they thought he might and sent us to the ER to get a chest x-ray and such. His chest was clearly in distress when breathing. He would just sit there and you could see his ribs when he breathed. Also, he walked up the stairs and he was sooo out of breath. Another thing to, is his chest was so tight that if I put my ear to his back, I could hear the wheezing in his lungs. The ended up putting him on beathing treatments for several days and all was better. But no pneumonia. So, it doesn't sound that your daughter does either, since it doesn't sound as severe as my son. However, I am no MD. So, if you are still concerned and she isnt getting better by tomorrow, take her back. Unless she is having a really hard time, I don't know that I would go to the ER. Probably more hassle than its worth. Good lukc and hope she feels better soon.
