any experience with asthma in young children?

[mtemm]

Daniel (16 months) started coughing pretty bad around 4 yesterday afternoon. By six he was coughing alternating sounding like barking and a squeak toy. His breathing was like Darth Vader by then, too. I tried some pediacare cough, and went into the bathroom and ran the hot water for steam. Wan't sure it did much. Tried the steam some more, tried to put him to bed, his breathing became more and more labored. But 11 we called the on-call nurse for the 3rd time and instead of waiting for the call back I made the decision to head to the hospital. After 5 treatments with the nebulizer and some steroids he was finally much better by around 3am. So sad! scary, too. Sent home with a nebulizer to give every 4 hours for 4 days, then as needed, and steroids to give 2x a day for 4 days. He did have a chest x-ray and all was clear.

The dr.s at the hospital and his pediatrician this morning are pretty sure it is asthma, although they both say that they won't confirm that until at least one more episode.

My sister and my mom have had asthma in the past, but I've never seen it in one so young. His ped said that since this is his first episode and he's over a year that chances are it may not be too severe and he may grow out of it.

Any words of advice? tips on getting him used to the nebulizer mask?

TIA!

 

[floridaminnie]

We have some kids in the neighborhood that have asthma. DD doesn't so far. I know one of the little boys averages one asthma attack a year. I don't think they ever really get use to using the mask. Does the ped. have any ideas what sparked the attack? I know we live within a ten mile radius of a power plant Do you have pets or does he have allergies? I hope this is his one attack, b/c it can be scary for both of you.

 

[janette]

My 9yo had RSV at 6mths. It is a respiratory virus, most people get a cold. Some especially infants get very sick, the symptoms are like asthma. Some kids can have RSV and not develop asthma after. My DD wasn't that lucky. From 6mths to 2 years we did breating treatments at least 3x / 4x a day. At 2 she seemed to have outgrown it and did great until she ended up in the hospital for asthma at 6. Since then she has been on several maintenance medications and is doing great. There have been a few bad times but in general she's doing very well.

My tips for an infant would include.

1) Don't expect them to get used to it, my DD ever did. It was better sometimes but many treatments were given with her screaming at the top of her lungs. The worst I remember was giving her a treatment in a convience store bathroom (it had an outlet) and her screaming the whole time. I'm sure people were wondering what I was doing to her but anyone that came in could see. If they are screaming they are breathing deep so the medication gets to their lungs, don't worry about it. Sometimes I also did it while she was asleep, that was pretty painless.

2) Know the signs of respiratory distress. There are a certain # of respirations a baby should have in a minute. We learned to time them so we could have a way of knowing when she wasn't getting air. I still know that a baby breaths 40x a minute and that over 70x is an ER trip. It does vary with age so as the Dr about what to look for.

3) You do learn your child's signs. My DD gets a cough. Those barking coughs are something I know to listen for. Every child is a little different.

4) Prop them up as much as possible to sleep. Laying flat makes it harder to inflate the lungs, a reclining position is best if possible.

Hope this helps. They really do just fine, I hope he's feeling better really quick

 

[tinaw]

My daughter was diagnosed at 12 mos. after 4 epoisodes. She is actually doing much better now and off the nebulizer but on 2 daily meds. When she was little we let her watch teletubbies ( her favorite then) or read books. Anything to try and keep her occupied. I hate to say it but sometimes bribery is a great thing. Candy ( which is a huge no-no in our house) and extra tv time worked too. It will get easier It got to the point that my daughter would go get her own medicine ready and "read" books to herself while having her treatment. She is 5 now and finally off the machine and on a asthema controlling inhaler with a decongestent/antihistamine medicine. My best adviser would be try to learn his "tells". My daughters always starts with a dry cough a day before the actual asthema hits in. Try not to freak out. It will only scare him and make an attack worse. Finally, if you get to the point where/if he is diagnosed find an allergy/asthema specialist. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE our pediatrician and she did a wonderful job diagnosing and getting the wheels turning but we finally went to a specialist last year and after trying a few new things and treatments my daughter has been the healthiest she has ever been. Last year she missed at least 3-4 days of school every month this year 3 days total!!! GOOD LUCK!

 

[Disneyaholic]

DS was diagnosed with asthma at age 6 mos. Wasn't much of a surprise, since DH is asthmatic.

He was hospitalized at age 18 mos. and had to be put in an oxygen tent-type thing. He HATED it and screamed the whole time when they tented a crib for him. (Screaming didn't do much for the asthma!) So, they brought in a regular bed and DH or I had to lay in the bed with him the whole time under the tent! (4 days)

Shortly after that, we were prescribed a nebulizer, which he and DH used for years. Now they're both on inhalers. (BTW, when he was young, we called the nebulizer "spaceman" and made it a game to put the mask on...)

DS' asthma used to be triggered only by a cold or other respiratory infection. Now, it's activity-induced. He's 15 now and plays every sport imaginable, so that inhaler is always close at hand!

Hang in there. Asthma is not fun, but at least you know about it now and it is treatable.... good luck!

 

[mtemm]

thank you everyone!!! Daniel has been doing much better. we haven't used the nebulizer yet today. His ped yesterday said not to unless it was needed, and thankfully it hasn't been. I appreciate all of your stories.

 

[MerryPoppins]

If he continues to have episodes, PM me and I'll give the name of a good read for children with asthma. I'll have to go look up the title. It really helped us.

 

[Lezah]

My 8yo son has had asthma since he was 1 month old. He was hospitilized with bronchiolitis the first time, but once he had it again 8 days later, they diagnosed him with asthma. He used to have at least 4 or 5 ER visits every winter (when it is most severe with him), but we have only had 1 this year cause we pulled up all the carpet in our living/dining rooms and in his bedroom. He has severe allergies too and this has helped so much. Ask your pediatrician to have him tested for allergies to see what triggers his asthma and there is a lot you can do to help. The nebulizer treatments are hard to get used to, I know. Jordan never got used to the mask when he was a baby. A respiratory technician when he was hospitalized at 18 months gave us a plastic tube thing that attached to the where the mask attached to so that we could just point it towards his mouth and nose and it worked wonders. No more screaming, even though I know that when they're screaming it's getting deep into their lungs. It's very hard to listen to when you're the Momma. Any other questions I can help with just pm me. Thanks and talk to you soon. Good luck and I hope that the worst is over.

 

[honeywolf7]

My DS was diagnosed as a baby (he's three years old now) and the doctors have told us that the mask isn't really necessary as long as we let the nebulizer blow right into his face (and now he puts the thing that the mask would usually attach to right in his mouth.) He has been hospitalized several times for asthma attacks (even though we give him the proper medication, etc.)

 

[mtemm]

his ped told us that the mask really doesn't need to be on his face, which has helped. She's calling it a broncho spasm or something like that at this point. I'm hoping he doesn't have another episode, at least not for a long time!

thank you all for your input. Hopefully I won't be back looking for any more advice, but if I need it its nice to know people who have gone thru it.

 

[rae519]

Michael developed asthma two months ago - he is 8 years old. It's been just awful for him, and I can only empathize with your parents of younger children.

He is on a buffet of medications including a nebulizer. We thought we had it under control but today at Church, the incense got to him and triggered a reaction.

God bless you and yours,

Rae

 

[bumcat]

Lezah - We also got rid of all our carpet thru out the house and what a difference it has made. My son is 9 and has had asthma since he was a baby, also have two daughters with asthma but theirs is mild. He had lots of attacks until a year ago when we got rid of the carpet. He has only had one since then.
Finally he is off all maintenance as of two months ago!! Like my girls he takes albuterol when needed.
We also do not have curtains in the house just blinds.

 

[Lezah]

It is amazing how much changing the floor coverings can help. I wish we had done it long before. We didn't do it until we could afford to put something else down, but even the uncovered floor would have helped him. We have tried doing the no stuffed animals in the bedroom, but we couldn't do it. He has so many Disney animals (Pooh Bear, Stitch, Mickey etc) he couldn't part with so we just cut down on the amount that we had and only have Disney animals in his room now. At least we have our priorities straight!

 

[rae519]

AT Church yesterday the incense used during Mass caused him to have an attack!! Not sure what we will be able to do, but talking to our priest is on the list!

Rae