OT: Croup? Help!

[brergnat]

Is this croup? Or something else???

My son, 23 months got VERY sick today, very quickly. We were at Disney's California Adventure this a.m. and he was okay at first, but became very lethargic and clingy and his eyes looked awful (red and watery). I came home and he fell asleep in the car ride home (it's a 15 min ride...he never does this).

He woke when we got home and was VERY warm; his temp was 103.5. I gave him tylenol and a light lunch and put him down for his nap. He slept 3 hours. He woke coughing, and it sounded like a seal bark. He was making that noise when he breathed every once in awhile. It was a very harsh sound.

He layed on the couch and I was tending to my older son (3.5), giving him his dinner. I was keeping an eye on my little one, and he just started getting more and more red (ears, cheeks) and his arms and legs started looking mottled. I ran over to him and the COUCH was burning hot where he was sitting. I took his temp again...105.0!!! I gave him Ibuprofen and put him in the bath, and paged the pediatrician. She told me to get the fever down first, then go to urgent care. I called Urgent care, but the wait was 3 hours. I put in a call to my parents and sister, to find someone to stay home with my other DS and put him to bed, etc. He slept badly last night, and was very tired tonight. Well, no one was answering their phones...I'm here alone (DH deployed to Iraq) and I don't have anyone in town who I can call. I decided to just hold off for awhile.

My son's fever went back down to 103, which was much better than 105, and he ate two waffles (plain) and some applesauce. He was acting pretty normal, playing withhis trains and stuff. Well, about 10 minutes later, he threw it all up.

He's asleep now. He was fine during/after his bath. Smiling and playing. His fever was still 103 after the bath. He fell asleep no problem.

I will take him to the doctor first thing tomorrow (or overnight to the ER, if he gets worse).

I am just wondering if this sounds like typical croup? He was not sick prior to today. What worries me is the high fever and vomiting. What I've read about croup is that there is usually only a low grade fever associated with it.

Any input?

 

[StephMK]

DS5 had that in Dec & sounded very similar. He had a little runny nose & woke up that night barking, hot as heck & said he couldn't breathe right. Due to the breathing, DH took him to the ER. They gave him a suppository to get his fever down because he threw up all over as soon as they got there. They said keeping the fever down is important to reducing the croup symptoms.

DS has a history of asthma & had RSV at 18mo which ended up a 4 day stay in the hospital. So he had some breathing history that made me take him right away. He ended up home for a week from school & it turned to viral bronchitis. They ended up doing a chest xray later that week to check for pneumonia & found the viral bron. was it instead.

Not trying to be scary, just letting you know things you might look out for. If he can hold down some meds, they really stressed alternating ibu. & tyl. Please don't take my med advice though! I hope your little guy feels better quickly, it's scary & extra hard not having help nearby. WIthout DH, I have no family around so I know it's esp. not easy on you.


PS And they said try a hot steamy room or extreme cold to help the symptoms. I sat in the freezing car w/DS & it did help w/the breathing. You can turn on a hot shower or stand in front of the freezer open since I'm pretty sure you're not freezing in CA.

 

[ChrisMouse]

My two kids have had croup every winter since they were born, but they never had a really high fever OR vomiting with it. I'm sure you're scared!

Just wanted to post how WE handle the middle of the night croup hours (though you should call your on call doctor or nurse to get their advice!! I'm just a regular MOM...you need a doctor's advice!!)...

That said, here's how we have handled croup:

Sleep near him, so you can help right away. Also, turn up your water heater so that you can get good, hot water/steam.

If you wake up to hear the seal barking, check his breathing. If he is not getting air, and you can see his ribs "sucking" in with his breaths, I would take him to the ER. If he is doing the seal coughing but seems to be getting air ok, take him right into the bathroom and close the door. Put a towel under the door to block the air. Plug the tub and run the shower on hot (with the curtain or door closed...you are NOT getting into the water). You want the tub to fill so the hot water creates the steamiest possib le bathroom. I sometimes run the hot water in the sink, too. Sit on the floor of the bathroom with your child and have him breathe the steam for 20 minutes or so. Then you want to immediately go right outside, where he can hopefully breathe in COLD air for awhile.

I would definitely get in touch with your doctor on call or take him in if you are worried. Croup can be very scary. They can give him a steroid that will make him cranky but will really help. My daughter is 5, and she ended up in the ER with croup when she was 1 and when she was 3.

I hope he feels better soon. Bottom line, if you are uncomfortable or worried, TAKE HIM IN!!!

Good luck & take care!

 

[moepanz]

My older son gets the Croup. I don't recall him having such a high fever but I know when he is sick the Croup does act up. What my Dr. tells us to do is put him in the bathroom with shower steam.

So sorry for all the stress you are under. I can't imagine being alone like you are. Keep an eye on the fever. I would ask the Dr about alternating Childerns Motrin and Tylenol to manage the fever.

Hope it's all better soon.

 

[tadamom]

I'm with some of the others about the fever and croup. My son has had croup several times and I was thinking he only had a low grade fever with it.

With that being said, my son is sick right now. He has strep. His symptoms are high fever (it is pretty much staying around the 101 - 102 mark right now), sinus drainage, tummy ache, headache, his eyes are super red & watery and super red cheeks. He also has a junky cough that at times has been sooo deep that it would resemble the bark cough that he gets when he has had croup. The doctor also told us that on top of the strep he may have a mild case of the flu. He had the shot since he can't take liquid medicine w/out throwing up, so I am hoping he is better tomorrow.

And, just like your little boy my son felt fine yesterday. We went to church, out to lunch and then he went to get groceries with his grandmother and aunt. It was until dinnertime that he started to complain he didn't feel well and right before bed he started to get the fever.

I hope your little one is better ASAP!

BTW, does he seem to have any splotchy dry skin areas on his body? My son gets a place on his cheek that he only get when he has strep. It showed up on the way to the drs. office.

If you look in his throat, do you see red streaks or white sore/bumps in his throat?

 

[jennie-pooh]

I'm in round two of what sounds like the same thing right now! DS1 (almost 4) spiked to 104 something yesterday, but it came down pretty fast. We have been alternating advil/tylenol. He's had croup MANY times, and has had a pretty barky cough with this round of sickness.

DS2 (6) got a fever tonight while we were doing homework. We leave for Disneyland Thursday morning, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed they heal fast.

I don't think you need to panic, but the other ladies gave you great advice to help out until you can see a dr!

 

[RMulieri]

Is this croup? Or something else???

My son, 23 months got VERY sick today, very quickly. We were at Disney's California Adventure this a.m. and he was okay at first, but became very lethargic and clingy and his eyes looked awful (red and watery). I came home and he fell asleep in the car ride home (it's a 15 min ride...he never does this).

He woke when we got home and was VERY warm; his temp was 103.5. I gave him tylenol and a light lunch and put him down for his nap. He slept 3 hours. He woke coughing, and it sounded like a seal bark. He was making that noise when he breathed every once in awhile. It was a very harsh sound.

He layed on the couch and I was tending to my older son (3.5), giving him his dinner. I was keeping an eye on my little one, and he just started getting more and more red (ears, cheeks) and his arms and legs started looking mottled. I ran over to him and the COUCH was burning hot where he was sitting. I took his temp again...105.0!!! I gave him Ibuprofen and put him in the bath, and paged the pediatrician. She told me to get the fever down first, then go to urgent care. I called Urgent care, but the wait was 3 hours. I put in a call to my parents and sister, to find someone to stay home with my other DS and put him to bed, etc. He slept badly last night, and was very tired tonight. Well, no one was answering their phones...I'm here alone (DH deployed to Iraq) and I don't have anyone in town who I can call. I decided to just hold off for awhile.

My son's fever went back down to 103, which was much better than 105, and he ate two waffles (plain) and some applesauce. He was acting pretty normal, playing withhis trains and stuff. Well, about 10 minutes later, he threw it all up.

He's asleep now. He was fine during/after his bath. Smiling and playing. His fever was still 103 after the bath. He fell asleep no problem.

I will take him to the doctor first thing tomorrow (or overnight to the ER, if he gets worse).

I am just wondering if this sounds like typical croup? He was not sick prior to today. What worries me is the high fever and vomiting. What I've read about croup is that there is usually only a low grade fever associated with it.

Any input?

Classic sign of croup...the cough that sounds like a seal bark.It sounds like more then the croup though.Fevers of 105 with croup are possible..not ususal though.call your Dr.

 

[RMulieri]

By the way...the flu is out and about in full force.My 4 yr old had a nasty cough and 104 temp..she was fine the day before and this hit real fast...Dr said it is the strand of flu not covered by this years flu shot

 

[UsNew2Disney2008]

My ds has had the croup several times. One thing the ped recommends is wrapping them up so they stay warm and taking them outside at night. Generally the cool night air helps.

This is the time of year for it. The cough sounds like a seal bark almost. If it is croup, it can take a long time to get over the cough even after they get better. Seams like a little over a month.

Hope that your baby gets better soon.

 

[jazzmine]

Sounds like it. DS had it in November and it was NOT easy. We used a humidifier in his room and a few times I took him into the bathroom that I steamed up with the shower. Those high temps can be the worst. I hope your kiddo feels better soon!

 

[MommaSnowwhite]

It sounds like it came on very quick. That is a sign in influenza. My DD had it about 2 weeks ago and her Dr. said the flu comes on really quick. DD had high fevers and a nasty cough that isn't quite gone yet. Good luck and I hope he feels better soon.

 

[akelly]

I'm so sorry your DS is feeling so bad. Isn't it so hard to see your little ones suffering?

I just want to write a quick note to say that breathing problems are nothing to mess with. My daughter had croup last year (very low fever) and I agree the coughing you describes sounds similar, but, I encourage you to get a doctor to listen to your son breathe just to make sure it's not something else such as pneumonia. Pneumonia can also come on very fast.

Hang in there and at least if a doctor listens to him breathe he could rule out wheezing from pneumonia or from a virus. Unfortunately, I know all too well about being sick from virus induced asthma and pnemonia (my kids and me) - not fun. And, if it is croup, the prescribed steriods can really help the throat inflammation.

Best of luck and hugs to you little guy
Amy

 

[brergnat]

First of all, thank you for all the replies. I am going to call the doctor as soon as they open in 15 min and try to get him in a.s.a.p.

I put on a cool mist humidifier in his room last night AND ran the A/C, just to keep cold room air. It's not cold enough here at night to warrant the heater, but it was warm yesterday so the house was warm (73 degrees inside). I brought it down to 69 w/ the AC.

I slept like garbage, although DS seemed okay. I woke up to his "seal bark" breathing twice, and gave him tylenol around 10pm, then ibuprofen at 4am. I didn't take his temp in the middle of the night, be he was very warm both around 12:30am and 4am. I rocked him both times he seemed to be struggling to breathe, and being upright seemed to help him. He was able to go back to sleep pretty easily both times (not me though). He never seemed in distress about the breathing, although it sounded "junky". I was prepared to call 911 if he had any signs of breathing distress...I am not one to mess with that! He did okay, though, and he is doing better this morning. He's at least playing and ate some breakfast.

I appreciate all the input re: strep, flu, pneumonia, etc. These are the things I was worried about, so we'll see what the doctor says. My kids are usually healthy as a horse (neither the 3.5 year old or this one have ever needed antibiotics for anything!), so this is "new" to me. Never had to deal with anything more than a cold or simple stomach virus.

I'll let you all know what the doctor says. Thanks again!

 

[tadamom]

I'm glad you checked in, I wondered about him this morning b/c I do believe that my son has the flu as well as the strep. He is still running the fever and just feels sooooo crummy!

Check in and let us know what the doctor says! Big Hugs to all of you!

 

[Daydreamer64]

FWIW- I have three asthmatic kids. They have all had croup- one thing to keep in mind is the warm steam or cold air can help with the croup cough

HOWEVER_

please be cautious- if a child has asthma and they get croup- do not take them into the cold air after the steam- it can bring on a major asthma attack.

No one in our family are asthmatics- I wasn't diagnosed until after the kids were diagnosed. It is possible for a child to have asthma and have no relatives with this disease.

I'm not trying to scare you but just pay extra attention if you are switching from heat to cold.

 

[NotUrsula]

I've got the only kid in the world who is prone to getting croup in the middle of the summer. What we used to do is to open up the freezer and hold him in front of the door so that he could breathe the really cold air coming out of it. I always found cold air to be more effective than steam for croup.

Croup is inflammation of the larnyx and trachea, so you want anti-inflammatory meds, like Ibuprofen. Tylenol (acetaminophen) isn't effective for inflammation, though it will reduce fever and pain. If your child gets a history of this the doc will give you oral cortisone to use to take down the inflammation in a hurry (and a shot of the stuff is what a serious case will be treated with in the ER.)

The thing to listen for with croup isn't the cough, it's stridor, which is the signal that the child is seriously sick. Here's what the Dr. Sears website has to say about it:

Stridor is a harsh, raspy, whooping, gasping sound when your child breathes in. ... Here's when to be concerned but not to panic. The child whose airway is obstructed and who is unable to get enough air has a worried look on his face and is not interested in any play or interaction, as if concentrating all his energy on getting air. Child won't lie down; he just sits up and barks, and he can't sleep. When you watch the little dent in child's neck just above the breastbone, it caves in with each labored breath. This sign is called indrawing. Stridor (see above) is another sign to watch for. The stridor will sound worse when your child is agitated or crying. When the child is resting calmly, the stridor usually lessens or goes away. If your child is calm, but still has stridor, this is a sign that the croup is worsening and requires immediate treatment.

BTW, croup is viral, so there is no point in antibiotics for it. It can last about 5 days, and you just have to carefully keep treating the symptoms until it goes away. That is, if it *is* croup, of course. If you are not sure how to recognize it, best to have the ped take a listen. Mine will diagnose it over the phone -- the sound of the cough is that unique.

 

[tmatthews]

My DS gets croup all the time! We have a steriod at home that we now use when he starts since there have been times he has developed croup during the day and needed a steriod shot (also asthmatic) Vicks vapor rub always seems to help. I can remember being on the emergency phone one night and they suggested warm tea. I have to say though my son almost never has had a fever w/ it. With a fever that high, I would alternate tylenol/advil.
Good luck to you and hope you have a better night. (all of you!!)

 

[MandM-Mom]

Our middle DD used to get croup alot as a toddler, we have made a few 2am trips to ER for the shots. Somthing else we do when our little ones are sick and have a bad fever is use Feverall Supositories because when fever is high its hard to keep anything down because it upsets the belly. Works perfect brings fever down and then they feel better enough to drink the fluids they really need!!!

 

[Not so Dumbo]

Just an FYI on how dangerous croup can be. A cousin of mine's DD18mo had croup and after my cousin who is an ER nurse did the whole bathroom steam thing, her DD was feeling better and so she put her back to bed and an hour later she had a mother's gut feeling and went to check on her and found her not breathing and BLUE. Luckily, she knew what to do and was able to get her breathing again and then they took an ambulace ride to the ER. I hate to think what would have happend if she hadn't checked on her.