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Respiratory Disorders (Expert Forum)
my 2 year old
Answered by
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my 2 year old
by mysmile*, Apr 14, 2004 12:00AM
My two year old began developing breathing problems last year, when he started with a runny nose and then within hours he was admitted to the hospital where they expressed that he had phneumonia. the next day after resp. therapy and anti biotics. he was discharged and feeling fine... the same scenario has happened six times since then, it makes me feel like a terrible mother. His dr. put him on pulmicort, and xeopenex. in a nebulizer at home...as needed. the problem that i have is by the time that he shows signs of needing it, they do not relieve his wheezing. also when this happens he gets a fever. They say that he has asthma triggered by colds. He was born six weeks early though. there are a few questions i have 1. could this be something more seriouse? 2. why does he get a fever with his asthma attacks? and 3. might he grow out of this if it is asthma?
Doctor's Answer
by National Jewish, Apr 19, 2004 12:00AM
, Apr 19, 2004 12:00AM
Since your son was born 6 weeks early, he is more likely to develop asthma. However what you have described could be asthma or reactive airways disease (RAD).
Infections like a cold or pneumonia can cause inflammation of the airways of the lungs. Usually when this occurs, your son may cough when he is active or laughs. This inflammation can cause wheezing. After the infection is gone, it is possible for the inflammation to linger. This inflammation can last for several weeks. Sometimes this inflammation may linger for 3 to 6 months. Eventually the inflammation will go away, and then the wheezing will stop. This is called RAD and behaves a lot like asthma. This inflammation often clears more quickly when it is treated with an inhaled steroid, like the Pulmicort Respules™ (budesonide inhalation suspension) in the nebulizer, which you have been giving to your son as needed. His doctor is the best judge of this.
When this continues, it is generally considered to be asthma. Testing can be helpful to show if the symptoms are due to asthma or RAD. Generally testing starts with a simple breathing test called spirometry. This test provides detailed information about how the lungs are working. It will show if there is obstruction in the airways. However for spirometry to be helpful in determining if wheezing is due to asthma or RAD, children need to be able to follow directions well. Generally children need to be at least school age to do this. Until children are old enough to do this testing, they are commonly treated with asthma medicines by nebulizer to control the symptoms.
Your son’s fever of 102+ is due to the infection. Asthma does not cause a fever. There are a variety of things that can make asthma worse. These things are called triggers. It is common for infections to trigger asthma. So your son gets an infection that causes a fever and triggers his asthma.
Some children start to have problems with asthma only after having a severe respiratory infection, like pneumonia. If the pneumonia does not completely clear up it is possible for it to occur again. To be sure that the pneumonia has totally gone away a chest x-ray is usually done after the child is well.
Once a child has asthma, they will always have asthma. It does vary from child to child. For some children the symptoms will come and go. For others the symptoms are constant. However as children grow in size, their airways will also become larger. Sometimes children have little or no asthma symptoms when this happens. So it is possible for a child’s asthma symptoms to go away as they get older. However they still have asthma and their symptoms may return at any time. There is no cure for asthma at this time, but it can be controlled with medicine.
Early warning signs are changes that happen before the start of an asthma attack. These signs are unique to each child. Early warning signs may be the same, similar or entirely different with each attack. By recognizing these clues in your son, you would know that he needs the Pulmicort Respules™ (budesonide inhalation suspension) and the Xopenex® Inhalation Solution (levalbuterol HCl) in the nebulizer before he begins to wheeze and possibly before his nose begins to run. Some examples of early warning signs are:
· Breathing changes
· Sneezing
· Moodiness
· Headache
· Runny or stuffy nose
· Coughing
· Chin or throat itches
· Feeling tired
· Dark circles under eyes
· Trouble sleeping
· Poor tolerance for activity
Infections like a cold or pneumonia can cause inflammation of the airways of the lungs. Usually when this occurs, your son may cough when he is active or laughs. This inflammation can cause wheezing. After the infection is gone, it is possible for the inflammation to linger. This inflammation can last for several weeks. Sometimes this inflammation may linger for 3 to 6 months. Eventually the inflammation will go away, and then the wheezing will stop. This is called RAD and behaves a lot like asthma. This inflammation often clears more quickly when it is treated with an inhaled steroid, like the Pulmicort Respules™ (budesonide inhalation suspension) in the nebulizer, which you have been giving to your son as needed. His doctor is the best judge of this.
When this continues, it is generally considered to be asthma. Testing can be helpful to show if the symptoms are due to asthma or RAD. Generally testing starts with a simple breathing test called spirometry. This test provides detailed information about how the lungs are working. It will show if there is obstruction in the airways. However for spirometry to be helpful in determining if wheezing is due to asthma or RAD, children need to be able to follow directions well. Generally children need to be at least school age to do this. Until children are old enough to do this testing, they are commonly treated with asthma medicines by nebulizer to control the symptoms.
Your son’s fever of 102+ is due to the infection. Asthma does not cause a fever. There are a variety of things that can make asthma worse. These things are called triggers. It is common for infections to trigger asthma. So your son gets an infection that causes a fever and triggers his asthma.
Some children start to have problems with asthma only after having a severe respiratory infection, like pneumonia. If the pneumonia does not completely clear up it is possible for it to occur again. To be sure that the pneumonia has totally gone away a chest x-ray is usually done after the child is well.
Once a child has asthma, they will always have asthma. It does vary from child to child. For some children the symptoms will come and go. For others the symptoms are constant. However as children grow in size, their airways will also become larger. Sometimes children have little or no asthma symptoms when this happens. So it is possible for a child’s asthma symptoms to go away as they get older. However they still have asthma and their symptoms may return at any time. There is no cure for asthma at this time, but it can be controlled with medicine.
Early warning signs are changes that happen before the start of an asthma attack. These signs are unique to each child. Early warning signs may be the same, similar or entirely different with each attack. By recognizing these clues in your son, you would know that he needs the Pulmicort Respules™ (budesonide inhalation suspension) and the Xopenex® Inhalation Solution (levalbuterol HCl) in the nebulizer before he begins to wheeze and possibly before his nose begins to run. Some examples of early warning signs are:
· Breathing changes
· Sneezing
· Moodiness
· Headache
· Runny or stuffy nose
· Coughing
· Chin or throat itches
· Feeling tired
· Dark circles under eyes
· Trouble sleeping
· Poor tolerance for activity
Member Comments (2)
by mysmile*, Apr 14, 2004 12:00AM
Sorry about the double post
