My son Caleb has been sick for going on 8 weeks now. I have had him back to the doctor 6 times now for this, and he has a follow-up appt. next week.
The first week it started as the stuffies. Runny/crusty nose, slight fever, hard time breathing at night because it would all back up in his nose. This went on for a couple of weeks, then it started running down his throat making him vomit b/c he would get so choked on it. This generally happened at night after I had nursed him. He would begin to cough so hard and get chocked that he would throw up all over me, him, the bed. (Needless to say, none of us have had much sleep for the last 2 months). For all of this we have a prescription cold/decongestion medicine, the Vicks baby rub, and humidifier.
About 4 weeks into this, he developed an ear infection, which we treated with an antibiotic.
This all went on for about 3 more weeks, until he started developing a wheezing rattling sound in his chest. So back to the doctor we went to find out he has bronchitis. Now he is on a nebulizer 4 times a day with Xopenex. But, this doesn't seem to be working. Actually, I think the junk in his chest is getting worse. He sounds more congested and "tight" than he did to begin with. And he is still getting up about every 1 to 2 hours at night.
I just want my sweet baby to get feeling better. I am wondering if this is a chronic illness such as Asthma or allergies versus a virus that he just cannot kick. Has anybody else's child went through something like this. Should I be asking the doctor to do something more or different?
If he is not better by next week, he is going to have a chest X-ray and probably be put on an oral steriod. Yikes! I'd appreciate any stories you have. Thanks!
Thank all of you ladies. We ended up taking him back to the doctor after he threw up all over me again Tuesday night. They have now put him on a different antibiotic (Augmentin, sp?) telling me that he now has a sinus infection and Zyrtec for allergies. I hope I'm not speaking to soon, but he slept from 8:45 to 5 this morning without waking or coughing. After I nursed him, he went back to sleep until 7 with no throwing up or coughing! Ah, a sigh of relief! Thanks again!!
C.,
My daughter is 7 months old and has had the same thing since the day I brought her home from the hospital. Her Dr put her on a decongestant and that was it. At first they were telling me that it was only milk getting stuck in the back of her throat.
It gets worse and then better. This week unfortunatly it is worse. But if anyone gives you any information would you please help me as well?
Hey C.,
Gosh, I am so sorry to hear your plight! I SOOOOO know what you are going through. My oldest son, who is now 12 thank god!!, was born in December and was on a nebulizer by the time he was 2 or 3 months old. He was so congested and snotty all the time that I could never get it all out. Even with those ridiculous little snot sucker things. HE HATED THOSE!
Eventually I discovered on my own that he just had seasonal allergies, but they were all seasons, lol! He is still very snotty and all that most of the time and he is usually needing to blow his nose just because he has a more than normal amount of mucus and whatnot up there that if left alone without regular nose blows and allergy sinus meds he can be a really gross mess.
See what your doctor can prescribe you that is like Mucinex for little kids or I think they make that for little kids now, IT IS SO GOOD, better than even most prescription strength things I think and that will help break up the congestion. The biggest problem you are having is that he is not getting all of it out and it is just sitting there in his body making him sicker. Your body is supposed to do that kind of thing as a defense mechanism, however, when they are little like that they can't get it all out on their own, i.e., nose blowing and coughing it out and spitting out what accumulates in their chest and what not, that is why it has gotten so bad. He needs an expectorant to help him get it up and the decongestant to break it up. So once it's broken up good, the expectorant will help him to expectorate or "get it up and out". Once you get all the old yuckies out his condition will probably improve dramatically.
After he is finally well, keep some kids strength allergy sinus stuff around and about a week or so before the actual change of the seasons on the calendar, keep it handy, because that is the key to keeping him well. If at the FIRST sign of a sniffle or a cough, watery eyes or what ever that symptom is for allergies, give him the allergy sinus. It will help stave off the yuckies before they get started. I know this situation has been really hard on you and him as well. But trust me, from what you are saying, that is kind of what it sounds like to me.
Thankfully the older he gets, the easier it will get for YOU. He has to be able to cough it out/up and blow his nose on his own to get rid of all of it. My son is now like I said, sniffy most of the year, but if he takes his allergy sinus stuff he usually just ends up with monstrous boogers, lol!
I hope that helps you out a bit. God bless you and your family and I wish you MOST LUCK with this as I know it is not only a worry for you but is also VERY ANNOYING!! You just feel helpless and like snot is gonna get your kid, cause really that is what it is.
Take care,
Kat
Don't fret about the oral steroids. My little guy has been on Orapred several times and it works great. We have been going through this since he was 3 months old with his first incident. I would ask for albuterol, it comes in a liquid that he can take orally instead of using the nebulizer. That worked for us for about 3 years. Now we use the nebulizer but he is 5. We just started using the pulmacort, I'm not sure the age for it but it seems to be helping quite a bit as well. I would also ask for Singulair that has kept Luke from getting sick as often this last year he has only been sick twice. The only thing about Albuterol and Orapred is that it makes them a little hyper and they have a hard time sleeping but it's worth a few sleepless nights to get them well again!
Hi C.,
Sorry your little guy has been sick for so long!Don't let the chest x-ray & oral steroid scare you. My son (who is now 6) was having some issues like this when he was 4 months old. It didn't go on for such an extended amount of time (more like 4 weeks) but we did end up at the doc multiple times. Actually, they probably just assumed it was me calling anytime the office phone rang! Anyway, the scariest part for me was when he was wheezing & needed the nebulizer & oral steroid...I was in tears. Seeing that little nebulizer mask on his face was so awful!!! I have asthma myself & I didn't want my little boy to end up the same way. But, the great thing is that once the oral steroid kicked in, it cleared him up so much & he got better very quickly. If Caleb sounds more congested now, even after using the nebulizer, you should let the doctor know...they may check him again sooner than next week.
I have no idea if this will help you any or not! I hope it does & that Caleb gets better very quickly:)
A.
I am really afraid that this will happen to my baby, and if it does I plan to give Dr. Mark Eisen a shot, we met with him before I gave birth, unfortunately my partner wanted a more mainstream doctor. Here is his website: http://drmarkeisen.com/index.htm I really liked him, my boy has had 1 ear infection (he's almost 8 months), and if he has another, I am going to take him to Dr. Eisen because I prefer him not to be on antibiotics. Good Luck!!!
Ask the doctor if he would test him for RSV. The ear infection is a secondary infection to what is going on.
You and your son will be in my prayers.
C.
Well, if it's asthma, the steroids will help. But they'll help if it's a lot of other respiratory things too. The scariest thing is that it seems to be getting worse. Which antibiotic was he on? Amoxicillan? A lot of infections are immune to it nowadays. He may need a stronger antibiotic.
Goodness, I really hope this gets resolved for you!
i just joined but want to tell you about my experience with similar problems. My daughter had constant sever sinus problems. She had several ear infections. She was diagnosed with allergies when she was 2 or 3. They treated her with Zyrtec & nose spray. She had to take both of these daily. It didnt work. She would still get sinus infections. She would be on antibiotics (Augmentin) for 10 days each time. She would be better for a week or 2. Then it was back. This went on for over 2 years. By the time she was 5 her tonsils touched in the back of her throat. She never complained of sore throats. We had many nights of her sinuses draining making her cough til she threw up. Finally when she was 5 i threw a fit in the doctors office and was given a referral to the ENT. On our first appt he sent her for xrays of her adenoids. They were also touching. Within a month of that first visit to the ENT she had both her tonsils & adenoids removed. She is now 10 and has had 1 major cold since her surgery. Her pediatrician never tested her for allergies. Don't let them treat your son for them if they haven't tested him. Even if it seems to work for a while. They finally tested her for allergies and she's not allergic to anything. If the current treatment works and he gets sick again insist on being referred to an ENT.
Hi C.,
I am going through the same thing right now- nothing quite as bad as bronchitis, but my son has been sick pretty much since his 12 month checkup. He got shots that day (which he had a reaction to), and I think we have had a total of about 1 week of perfect health since then (he is 14 1/2 mos). Around this time, he also started going to a mom's morning out program and has been exposed to one virus after another. (Actually, my son is with my husband at the dr.'s office this very moment!) It is extremely frustrating... I really feel your pain. Hang in there!
Let me tell you the same thing happened to my son who is three. He started with a runny nose that turned into this horrible cough and he was running fever I toke him to the Dr 3x and his Dr kept saying it is just a virus. Well after about 3 weeks of this he was not getting better he was getting worse and started to wheeze I switch his Dr and they listened to him and said he has bronchitis and asthma..Let me tell you I wanted to go ring that other Dr neck I was so mad. He had to be on a neb also he was on albutrol every 4 hrs for the wheezing and pulacort 2 times a day and prednisone. he now has to have either use a puffer or the neb twice a day. Our new Dr who I love told us that he needs to stay on the pulacort or the puffer twice day if not every time he gets a cold it will turn into this bronchitis. I hope this helps and I hope your little one is getting better.
If I were you I think I would get a second opinion. Take him to someone else. Very soon! Get some good referals from this website or from people you know on another doctor. You may love your current pediatrician but I think it would be worth getting a fresh second opinion.
I think this problem has been going on too long not to have resolved. Demand answers! Don't let the doctor just write you another RX and send you out the door. He's your child and you are paying the doctor for his expertise. I would not let them put my child, especially one that young, on any more prescription medications without a definate answer as to what is wrong and a solid treatment plan.
I'm not real familiar with pediatricians in Charlotte but I can reccomend Cabarrus Pediatrics in Concord. They are very good, they listen and they don't jump to RX's too quickly.
Good luck. I hope Caleb starts feeling better very soon.
I'm a nurse, a mother and as of Tuesday a grandmother. I think the chest x-ray is a must. The x-ray will give a view of the lungs to rule out pnemonia and others chest problems and give the doctors a better idea of where to go next. This has gone on for far too long already. I would probably think about taking him to Children's Hospital if he doesn't start to improve.
Sounds like the antibiotics they're giving him aren't strong enough. (and I'm not one for putting babies on antibiotics)If it were my child, I'd be finding a new doctor. Seven weeks is a long time for one that little too be sick. And I wouldn't wait till next week. Antibiotics, if they are going to work will generally work within three days. You need to get in back in to see his pediatrition ASAP.
My guess is that the antibiotic needs to be broader spectrum meaning that they have not hit the right infection with the right antibiotic yet. It also sounds like he has had a number of things at once. I would get a second opinion.
