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Preemies
Silly question re: sickness prevention in preemies
Ok, this might be a silly question but I'm going to risk asking it. When we left the NICU we were told it is important to keep Dylan away from sick people, do proper handwashing, etc, this would be common sense in my mind for a full term baby as well.
We weren't told if there would be more issues as far as a preemie getting sick over a full term baby. So why is there so much emphasis on keeping a preemie healthier over a full term baby? The doctors and nurses didn't go into detail with but either way I wouldn't want my baby getting sick, preemie or not.
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Re: Silly question re: sickness prevention in preemies
When the sent us home they gave us the lecture about public places, sick visitors, and handwashing and told us that because he was a preemie (and that it was winter and RSV season) that if he were to get sick...even just a cold...that it was highly likely that we'd end up back in the NICU. They didn't go into specifics just "if he gets sick, he'll be back here" which was nice to tell friends & family because it meant anyone who eas even exposed to a sick person knew not to come over even if they still felt ok.
For years (some doctors say 2, some say 3 or more), preemies are susceptible to very serious complications with respiratory infections. At best, your preemie would just be sicker than a term baby would be with the same infection. At worst, the preemie could end up with serious, permanant damage to his/her lungs, or the preemie could even die. You really, really don't want your preemie to catch even a mild cold until he is much bigger, stronger, and his lungs are more developed.
A preemie's lungs are not the same as a full termer's lungs. Think of it like straws. If a termie is breathing through drinking straws, your preemie is breathing through coffee stirrers. That means that they're very easy to clog up. Sometimes as simple as a cold, they get a little mucus in their lungs and they can't breath. You get wheezing and pneumonia and hospital stays.
It takes several years for your preemie's lungs to resemble that of a full term child. It's not just a matter of getting to full term- their lungs are damaged from having to work before they were ready to, and often from the breathing assistance they got when they were born.
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Tricia is absolutely right.
And it doesn't end at 2 or 3. My son is six and every cold he gets lasts twice as long as full term kids and always develops into a cough that requires breathing treatments. Always.
Oh no
Just buy lots and lots of soap, have bottles of hand sanitizer on every surface (we had them on the changing table, in the kitchen, on the coffee table, and by their cribs). Don't let people visit if they are sick, and ask all guests to wash their hands then use sanitizer when they come inside your house, and sanitize again before touching your little girl or any of her gear.
About one year ago, I had student who was an early preemie. She still had lung issues from it, particularly with colds. I teach HS, and this girl was an 18-year-old senior.