Asthma ...

acaudill75 · January 2013

Anyone's kid outgrown it?

DH took our 9 month old to the pedi. recently, and came home with a diagnosis of "probably mild" asthma, use the nebulizer. I asked if it was that meant she actually has it, or the pedi. thinks she might have it. She has eczema, and I have heard that the two can go hand in hand. She sounds like she needs to clear her throat at night when she breathes during her bottle, but no gasping for air or anything like that. She also has always had a croupy cough, which oddly enough has subsided in the last few weeks, in spite of the fact that we haven't used the nebulizer (we ran out of the solution and haven't had a chance to pick more up). So I guess my question is, has anyone had the same iffy diagnosis (I never trust DH to remember exactly what was said as he doesn't pay attention very well), and has your LO grown out of it? We have her eczema under control with the Aveeno cream, and there are no more patches or rashes, and like I said, even her cough is virtually gone. Obviously, if she needs the nebulizer, she will get it, but I hate how albuterol makes her so jittery.

J+MS · January 2013

Most pedi's dont like to give a firm dx because most kids do outgrow it. If the albuterol makes her jittery, ask for Xoponex. She should be old enough to use it and it doesn't have those side effects. Also anything that sounds croupy or a cough that lasts more than 2 weeks should be checked with a chest x-ray because kids at this age are subject to so many different illnesses like croup, bronchiolitis, and would not otherwise be filed under "mild asthma". good luck.

ETA: I see you said it's your 9 month old, she might not be old enough for Xoponex but I would ask pedi just in case it is an option for her.

Proudmommy0228 · January 2013

My daughter (almost 3 yrs) went through that to the point the dr has her on albuterol pulmicort and singular. She is still currently on the singular at night but doesnt need the nebulizer as much during the day

acaudill75 · January 2013

She had bronchiolitis due to RSV at about 4 months, as did my older daughter. When I say she has a croupy cough, I should say when she does cough, like any of us might because we have a tickle in our throat, or some such innocuous reason, it sounds croupy. When she does have a legitimate cough or cold, the cough sounds terrible, and makes me cringe. No one in my family has asthma, so I guess I was wondering if it is the pedi. just saying sounds like because they don't know and are loathe to make a diagnosis on an otherwise healthy child, or because she actually does have it. He said to give her a treatment with the nebulizer about 30 minutes before bedtime, which would back bedtime up for about an hour because she will be so hopped up! And I never know quite when she will want to go down for the night (she kind of has her own schedule from about 5-6. Anyway, thanks for the advice. I guess I will have to ask the pedi. myself since DH was satisfied with "sounds like" and I'm not. Asthma sounds scary to me and warrants further questioning.

emberlee3 · January 2013

Usually, "asthma" means reactive airways disease in babies and toddlers. The formal diagnosis of asthma typically is not given until a child is 5 or 6, as many younger children outgrow it. The symptoms are the same, and it is easier/more readily understood when called asthma. DS has reactive airways triggered by colds. We use an albuterol inhaler (with spacer) as needed. Usually we give him 2 puffs twice a day at the start of any cold; if full-blown wheezing occurs, we give 4 puffs every 3-4 hours and gradually space it out. Occasionally, he needs a nebulizer and/or oral steroids. In between times, he has no symptoms and does not need the inhaler. Of course, it took some time to figure out that his trigger was colds, rather than allergies or irritants in the air.

Oh, and my pediatrician has been great about writing stuff down for me when DH takes our kids to the doctor. HTH!

Brewtowngrl · January 2013

DS2 has a pre-Dx too. He is on all sorts of inhalers. 1 maintenance and 2 rescue. If you are not comfortable with the pedi's plan you can see a pulm. They will give you pretty clear instructions on what meds to you use with what symptoms. They usually have a form that they fill out that has green, yellow and red code. That gave me a lot of comfort especially when he was too young to say "hey, this breathing stuff sucks". I would also ask about using a plain inhaler with spacer since it is quick and they now believe it is just as effective as a neb. Our goal is to avoid oral steroids and we have made it 6 months now.

acaudill75 · January 2013

Thanks Ladies. The whole not breathing easily scares the bejeezus out of me. She is so young and can't really communicate with me if she has a difficulty with something, esp breathing. And for DH to say, it sounds like mild asthma, I'm like WTF? You didn't get literature, instructions written in blood, something concrete I can work with? He was too blase about it for my control freak nature. I will look further into, possibly with a specialist.

1026pumpkin · January 2013

I would ask for a referral to an Allergy/Immunology specialist- this is what they deal with and they'll be able to give you an accurate diagnosis. And you're right that asthma and eczema often go together- often with allergies...some people call it the "atopic triad" because people often have all 3. They will be able to prescribe the most appropriate meds and should give you a very specific action plan for when to use rescue meds, when to call the office, when to go to the ER, etc.

Hope LO is feeling better soon! Not being able to breath clearly is scary!

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