My son is 5 months old and has been congested since he was about 2 weeks old. I asked his doctor at his check up about it and he said that his lungs sounded fine and that there was no fluid in his lungs and that it's perfectly normal. He pretty much said that with him being in fluid for so long its draining from the back of the nose down into his system because he's to young to blow his nose. Which I guess made sense to me when he explained it that way. So his next check up came and he was still congested and he assured me that it was completely normal and he sounded fine. Since that appintment he developed a runny/stuffy nose and a cough oh and was still congested, so at his dr. appointment the dr. did say that he sounded a lil congested and that he had a lil cold but had to fight it himself. He also mentioned that it could last from 6-8 weeks with this being his first cold his body/immune system isn't used to fighting things off....So it's been about 4 weeks and he's not getting any better. My sister just informed me that a coworker of hers had the same problem with her son and his doctor. He was congested for awhile and her sons doctor brushed it off and said the same thing thats its normal and so on. Well she decided to take her son to a specialist and found out that his lungs were too big for his body and that his adnoids were swollen and need to be taken out. (now my sister isn't really good at relaying messages/stories so if this sounds odd it very well might be but thats what she told me)
Now with that being said I'm not sure if I should listen to his doctor and let him ride it out or take my son to a specialist. I do want to mention that we have a cat and a dog so after reading about this Im wondering now if it could be allergies. Any input or advice on this topic would be greatly appreciated.
My 7 month old baby has had the exact same thing ever since she was born. I breastfed for 3 months, then did formula, and now it has only been 2 weeks, but I switched her to soy formula and she is doing much better. Still just a little stuffy, but much better then before. She is actually sleeping through the night now. (She was waking up every night not able to breathe well.) Good luck!
take him to a specialist that will cause ear infection and later fluid and speech and hearing issues. and change docs.
I am not sure about the adenoids. but constant congestion could be numerous things from as simple as a cold, allergies to Reflux or aspiration.
My ds had the reflux and aspiration and I was told over and over that it was normal, lungs sounded clear etc until I got him to a specialist and they finally listened to what I was saying. The lungs are an amazing organ and can clear alot of things with out "sounding congested" but that doesn't mean that they are not in danger.
Like I said it could just be a baby runny nose for the winter, lots of times they can pick up one thing after another and it seems to last forever.
My best advice is to follow your gut! I learned that we know our babies better than anyone can...even doctors. They are not perfect and miss things often. Do some research online, educate yourself about the possibilities. There are lots of sites out there. And go to your ped armed with data. If he/she dismisses you go to another doctor, even a specialist.....we used a pulmonologist and gastroenterologist. If you feel there is something more to this then there may be....dont stop seeking advice until you are satisfied!
This all sounds very similar to my six-month-old son. He's been congested since he was about a month old. He clears up if he stays at my Mom's (no pets) for a night, but then comes home and within hours is congested again. The first few times we went to the pediatrician, she brushed the congestion off as nothing but nasal irritation or a slight cold. However, we've been back there so many times with ear infections (caused because he can't clear out his congestion), that she now believes it's allergies. She's told us that we can do allergy testing, but that it's really not worth it until they're about two because their immunities are building up and changing a lot until that age. Also, other than saline drops, the only other thing that can be done at such a young age is Benadryl, but you can't keep your child on that constantly. We're now on double ear infections after a bout with RSV just last week - I'm hopeful that all of this will clear up once we can start spending more time outside and away from the majority of the pet dander.
Good luck to you with whatever route you take!
Could very well be allergies, but with as many specialists as Cleveland is fortunate enough to have, if your instincts are saying check it out, check it out.
T., I had the same issue with my twins. Still off and on. Try before each feeding to use saiine note spray. I use (pediatrician recommended) Ayre (sp8. Then use the aspirator to get the loose mucous out. Whatever doesnt come out in the aspirator, he will poop out. Try not to touch his nasal passages or suck the waste saline back in the bottle. It can cause contaimnation of the bottle. Babies nasal passages are so tiny they cannot get the waste out. Make sure to change your air filter frequently of course. If you are sweeping or vacuuming, wait an hour or so until you bring baby into the room. The dust causes the mucous to go in overdrive to protect your baby from germs. If it continues I would let your doctor know wat you are doing and ask her if she would recommend further investigation. Hope it helps; I wouldnt be too concerned just yet. I would be more concerned if the mucous wasnt there.
My 4th baby has a condition called Laryngomalacia. It sounds like he is congested all the time and he does struggle a little more to breathe (you can see indentations on his chest and neck area when he breathes in). He actually isn't congested at all, it just sounds that way. Other people always as if he is sick or something. He started to sound that way about 2-3 weeks old. That is why I am mentioning it to you. It is something that will go away by the time he is 18 months old. It sounds better some days than others, but is almost always there. There really isn't any treatment and it doesn't really bother the infant all that much. My doctor actually said it "hurts" the mother more than the baby, just because it sounds and looks like it is hard on them, but it isn't.
I don't know if that is what your child has, but thought I would mention it, just in case. The other responses about allergies, reflux, etc are also good possibilities.
Someone already mentioned reflux, but I wanted to second that thought. My second son had it and the symptoms were the same. Now my 2 month old has it as well I think. He has been congested since the day he was born, although it is worse if I eat a lot of dairy (i breastfeed) so I'm guessing the reflux is being triggered by a dairy sensitivity. Honestly after going through all the testing with my other boy, I'm not pushing to do it again, it's not pleasant, my little one now doesn't seem to bothered by it, so I'm putting it off. Right now I avoid dairy, (although if you use formula talk to the doc before switching), feed him in as upright a position as possible and keep him upright for 30 minutes after feeding, I've inclined his bed so he doesn't lay flat to sleep (not that he sleeps in his bed anyways though lol) and we use saline nasal spray first thing in the morning and before bed. He's 2.5 months old now and it seems to be keeping him comfortable, which is all medication would do, standard treatment for reflux is nothing but an antacid anyways.
It could be an allergy to formula or something in your breastmilk if you nurse him. My sister was always congested as a baby all the time, at 2 years old my Mom found out she was allergic to eggs, milk and other dairy like cheese and yogurt. I know he isn't eating those things, but maybe it's getting passed along somehow or it's the formula?
I have been through this 4 times and have 4 different experiences. My oldest at 18 months had his adenoids and tonsils removed. It helped for a while. He did struggle with allergies. As an adult they found out he had obstructive sleep apnea and there was something wrong with his jaw alignment. His tongue was falling back over his airway and he was not getting enough oxygen. He ended up having surgery in his 20's on his jaw. He is sleeping better these days at 28. My second child had infections as a young child and was put on a maintenance does of antibiotics for one winter. He seemed to be better after that. At 16 they did a blood test and found out that his body's immune system was not working at it's best and had to give him another vaccine to boost it. He also has allergies and takes medication fro that. My third child has been sick for over two years and also as a child suffered from ear infections. I think she was on antibiotics too much as a child and is paying the price. Your body does need to learn to fight infections. If you are always taking antibiotics how can your body learn to it's job. The other side is knowing when there is something really wrong. My daughter was just diagnosed with an immune deficiency at age 15. She first became real sick in the 8th grade and has missed a lot of school. The immune system matures over the life of the child and fully develops around the age of 12. There are blood tests to check if the immune system is doing it's job. I am sorry if this is too much information to swallow. I know I wish there had been somebody there when I was struggling with all this to make sure I thought through what I was doing. I made a lot of mistakes and I am sure I still will. My youngest is 12 and he is on the autism spectrum. So some days I feel I could be a nurse or doctor. There are two options you need to rule out now: 1) Check for allergies (cats are the worst for allergies)
2) Rule out any physical issues (ear, nose, sinuses, jaw, throat). After all that then you need to rule out immune deficiencies. I would start with an allergist who also handles immunology issues (Dr Wishah in Westlake (across from the hospital there) handles both) An ENT specialist can rule out any physical issues. The medical profession though likes you to wait until you have enough infections to let you see a specialist. I know when my kids were babies I would use a bulb to help remove congestion from the nose and also using a humidifier. This winter has been so cold and dry. I have had to use myself a saline spray to help loosen my nose congestion so I can even blow it out. Good luck to you.
This sounds very similar to what I went through w/ my daughter, who is now nearly 6 months old. At 2 weeks old she had a "cold" that was congestion and turned into a terrible cough. She was such a noisy breather b/c of the congestion, you could hear her the minute we walked into the room. She essentially had that (congestion and cough, in addition to spitting up/vomiting) for 14 weeks straight and we were told the same thing, it could last for 6-8 weeks. We even did nebulizer treatments for 3 months straight. After many, many, many visits (probably 17!) to the pediatrician, she finally suggested we see some specialists including an ENT, a pulmonologist and having an upper GI done. Ultimately my daughter was diagnosed w/ reflux at 4 months old and she has been better ever since getting on the right medicine. Apparently reflux can cause the cough b/c the reflux is irritating the airways. You may want to ask your doctor about reflux or seeing a specialist. Another thing I recommend for the stuffy nose/congestion is the Saline spray ( my dtr tolerated the spray better than the drops) and the Snot Sucker (Nosefrida) it's so much better than the bulb syringe. Hope it works out for you, this is no fun!!!
