Hi Honey,
Yesterday I noticed that your brother was coughing intermittently after he got home from school. I was a little concern that he might have caught a cold. I also saw his classmates almost all have a runny nose, too.
So of course, I gave him his routine asthma treatment: nasal spray and 3 puffs of Albuterol. He was fine until around 3:15 a.m. He started coughing on and off, for about an hour. I knew it's his asthma again. I gave him everything I could do to soothe his cough: 3 puffs of Albuterol, water, Chinese herbal cough syrup, and even open the kitchen door to the backyard for some cool (and very rainy) air. Nothing really worked, and of course, none of us slept well last night.
Coincidentally, today was the scheduled follow-up telephone appointment with the pediatrician. What great timing. I told him what happened last night, and told him that your brother was doing a lot better since 2 weeks ago, up until last night. Pediatrician prescribed another inhaler for your brother, Flovent (which is a steroid). He said to use that twice a day for two weeks. Pump up the Albuterol to every 4 hrs again for 1-2 days, continue with Claritin and nasal spray. He said he's fairly sure your brother has asthma. It seems like his asthma is not hyperactivity-induced, as he doesn't really cough too much when he was running around. It might be inflammatory-induced. It's very likely that Aidan did catch a cold, and that triggered the asthma again. Pediatrician said the Flovent, though is steroid, is actually a lower dosage even using it everyday during the flu season than the rigorous 5-day treatment needed in case his asthma gets worse. He also referred us to see an asthma specialist, to give us more information. I hate to see that your brother dependent on all these inhalers for the rest of his life. Pediatrician said that it could be a lot worse than asthma. I knew he was right, coz I immediately thought of you. What your brother has to go through is nothing compared to what you have gone through. I just have to continue keeping an eye on him, and be pro-active with his asthma treatment.
Let's hope your brother's asthma will get better, and he will outgrow that when he gets older.
On a happier note, we signed all the papers for the new house, paid the down payment, and will VERY soon become homeowners! We're expecting to get the keys by the end of the week. Then we can take your brother down to the new house, on our way down to visit you.
I hope your home is not flooded. We've been having a big rainstorm and it's not pretty. Luckily, we chose your home to be slightly uphill, and hopefully you won't get too wet.
Miss you,
Mommy
Showing posts with label asthma. Show all posts
Showing posts with label asthma. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Wheezing + Allegies + Virus + Fever
*updated 9/30/09*
Mommy was so wrong. Your brother HATES the nasal chamber for the Albuterol. He did so well at the dr. office, but when we did that at home, he was kicking and screaming. I know it felt like he's being suffocated, but he gotta do it. I thought when he was sleeping, he wouldn't feel it. But when I woke up at 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. to do it, he woke up and struggled again. He did much better when I took him to Grandma's today.
Hello Logan,
So this is day 2 and your brother's fever is still around. I felt his forehead last night and early this morning, and he was fine. But after he's up and about, his forehead felt warm again. I measured his temperature with my not-so-accurate thermometer, and it was 99.5. If it was 99.5 with this crappy thermometer, I had a feeling it might be warmer.
So, I went on Kaiser's website to see if I would be lucky enough to get an appointment with the pediatrician today. Score! Appointment at 11:45 a.m., and I still have 1.5 hours to spare. I figured, since I am taking him to do the doctor, I should hold off the Motrin, so that we could get a more accurate temperature.
Your brother has been watching TV all morning. He was active and really was just himself. He did not seem lethargic, and his appetite though not huge, was definitely acceptable. So, I wasn't too concerned. I am more worried that he couldn't go to school tomorrow and I need to figure out how to take care of him, while going to work.
Aside from the fever, I noticed that yesterday and today morning, he was coughing up a storm. It seems to start when he first woke up, still lying in bed. But when he's up, then the coughing subsided.
So, your brother got his height and weight checked (40.5 inches and 36 lbs) and his temperature was at 99.9 degrees. I knew it's higher than what we measured at home. I told the doctor all the information that I had, he listened to your brother's lungs and voila! Wheezing! Doc asked if anyone in the family has asthma....Nope! I told him that Aidan did have one Albuterol treatment when he was very little, and then two more when we were in Macau. He said the possible wheezing, and maybe asthma, plus allergies might be causing the fever. On top of that, your brother might have caught a virus somewhere else (maybe at school since I know a few kids were out sick). Doc asked if I noticed Aidan coughing when he was running around (because of asthma). I don't think so, but then I am not 100% sure. I did notice he has a runny nose when he's at the park, or when I picked him up from school. I just always assume it was allergies, as he would be playing outside in the playground at school where there are trees and grass and dust.
So for now, your brother is prescribed with Albuterol treatment every 4 hours for the next day or two. Then nasal spray to help with the nasal drip twice a day, hopefully to help with the coughing. Doc also suggested to take Claritin for 4-6 weeks to help with allergies. "That's a long time! ", I said, but doc said the antihistamine was very mild and shouldn't be a problem. Doc said to do a phone appointment in 2 weeks to follow-up, and also to get the flu shot as well for the whole family.
Luckily, your big brother was a trooper. He didn't flinch during the Albuterol treatment, nor when I spray into his nostrils. He took the Claritin (like any other flavored medicine I give him) like a champ. I couldn't ask for a more cooperative little boy. But could I ask for a healthy boy? Is it too much to ask for a healthy son?
I also told Doc that we would be moving to Sunnyvale soon and would need to change to a different pediatrician. It was sad, as this Doc has been very supportive throughout your illness, and also your brother's care. He was nice, and quick to respond to my e-mails. He was sad, but said he has friends down in the Santa Clara Kaiser that he could refer us.
Let's hope your brother doesn't really have asthma for the rest of his life, and it's all because of the allergies and a possible virus that cause the wheezing. I know asthma is nothing too serious, but still, it could be for life. Logan, would you look after your big brother and pray for a speedy recovery for him?
Miss you,
Mommy
Mommy was so wrong. Your brother HATES the nasal chamber for the Albuterol. He did so well at the dr. office, but when we did that at home, he was kicking and screaming. I know it felt like he's being suffocated, but he gotta do it. I thought when he was sleeping, he wouldn't feel it. But when I woke up at 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. to do it, he woke up and struggled again. He did much better when I took him to Grandma's today.
Hello Logan,
So this is day 2 and your brother's fever is still around. I felt his forehead last night and early this morning, and he was fine. But after he's up and about, his forehead felt warm again. I measured his temperature with my not-so-accurate thermometer, and it was 99.5. If it was 99.5 with this crappy thermometer, I had a feeling it might be warmer.
So, I went on Kaiser's website to see if I would be lucky enough to get an appointment with the pediatrician today. Score! Appointment at 11:45 a.m., and I still have 1.5 hours to spare. I figured, since I am taking him to do the doctor, I should hold off the Motrin, so that we could get a more accurate temperature.
Your brother has been watching TV all morning. He was active and really was just himself. He did not seem lethargic, and his appetite though not huge, was definitely acceptable. So, I wasn't too concerned. I am more worried that he couldn't go to school tomorrow and I need to figure out how to take care of him, while going to work.
Aside from the fever, I noticed that yesterday and today morning, he was coughing up a storm. It seems to start when he first woke up, still lying in bed. But when he's up, then the coughing subsided.
So, your brother got his height and weight checked (40.5 inches and 36 lbs) and his temperature was at 99.9 degrees. I knew it's higher than what we measured at home. I told the doctor all the information that I had, he listened to your brother's lungs and voila! Wheezing! Doc asked if anyone in the family has asthma....Nope! I told him that Aidan did have one Albuterol treatment when he was very little, and then two more when we were in Macau. He said the possible wheezing, and maybe asthma, plus allergies might be causing the fever. On top of that, your brother might have caught a virus somewhere else (maybe at school since I know a few kids were out sick). Doc asked if I noticed Aidan coughing when he was running around (because of asthma). I don't think so, but then I am not 100% sure. I did notice he has a runny nose when he's at the park, or when I picked him up from school. I just always assume it was allergies, as he would be playing outside in the playground at school where there are trees and grass and dust.
So for now, your brother is prescribed with Albuterol treatment every 4 hours for the next day or two. Then nasal spray to help with the nasal drip twice a day, hopefully to help with the coughing. Doc also suggested to take Claritin for 4-6 weeks to help with allergies. "That's a long time! ", I said, but doc said the antihistamine was very mild and shouldn't be a problem. Doc said to do a phone appointment in 2 weeks to follow-up, and also to get the flu shot as well for the whole family.
Luckily, your big brother was a trooper. He didn't flinch during the Albuterol treatment, nor when I spray into his nostrils. He took the Claritin (like any other flavored medicine I give him) like a champ. I couldn't ask for a more cooperative little boy. But could I ask for a healthy boy? Is it too much to ask for a healthy son?
I also told Doc that we would be moving to Sunnyvale soon and would need to change to a different pediatrician. It was sad, as this Doc has been very supportive throughout your illness, and also your brother's care. He was nice, and quick to respond to my e-mails. He was sad, but said he has friends down in the Santa Clara Kaiser that he could refer us.
Let's hope your brother doesn't really have asthma for the rest of his life, and it's all because of the allergies and a possible virus that cause the wheezing. I know asthma is nothing too serious, but still, it could be for life. Logan, would you look after your big brother and pray for a speedy recovery for him?
Miss you,
Mommy
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
