lung infections

[Jackie813]

My daughter age 6 has been having lung infections since age 3.  Most of them develop from a common cold.  Some developed overnight (with no cold symptoms).  We have a nebulizer machine at home that we use whenever she has a lung infection.  She has not been diagnosed with Asthma, we are not really sure why the smallest cold turns into such a severe infection.  She is on a multi vitamin and other supplements to boost her immune system.  My daughter is now sick with walking pneumonia.  This time the antibiotics and steroids (and albuteral nebulizer treatments) are taking longer to work.  We would appreciate any advice.  Thank you

[Sunny602]

One other thing that can be checked is the status of your daughter's immune system to see if there are any deficiencies that are causing frequent severe infections. Also, has your daughter been tested for specific allergies? (Skin scratch test for example that tests for several antigens). Allergies can develop over time with repeated exposure, so it might be worth looking into. Keeping her room as allergy free as possible is not a bad idea as well...get rid of rugs, wash her bedding in very hot water weekly, putting those allergy free matress pads on her matress along with her pillows to reduce dust mite exposure etc...
I hope that this helps...Sunny

[Jackie813]

Thanks for your advice.  We did have the house checked for mold a few years ago.  We have several animals.  They were here before my daughter, so she has been living with them all of her life.  Again, thank you for your advice.  Jackie  

[Jennifer375]

As a mother of two myself my heart goes ou to you. As somone who has had lung infections since childhood that seem to always come back, I would offer a couple of ideas that may help reduce the frequency ...

1. if youve brought any pets into the home within the last 3 years, try to remeber if they arrived with a URI. We are told that infections can not spread from animals to people, but this is NOT true at all, particulary when the person in question is on steroids or otherwise immune suppressed. Whooping cough in humans is the same organism that causes kennel cough in dogs and more recently in cats (the infection has jumped species, I know this as a now ex cattery owner) so its something to keep in mind when trying to trace back the source of the problem.

2. If you live in the country or near farmed fields,, keep your children indoors whenever you know fields are being plowed. The dust/dirt that is blown around doesnt need to cause allergies, there are fungus's in the soil that can get into sensative lung tissues all around the US and fungal lung infections are currently at endemic levels now.

3. have your home checked for mold,, or if you recall ever seeing black spots on drywall, check it out more closely, bleach the area and paint it with several layers of heavy latex based paint if possible.

I hope this helps a little or atleast gives you a few new ideas to research and discuss with your family doctor.