Christmas wound up being a tough time for our little household. Everyone was sick, except for me (thankfully). The most worrisome though was that our little two month old, Patrick contracted RSV which became further complicated as Bronchiolitis. At about 10 p.m., the day after Christmas, I took Patrick to the ER because he was wheezing so badly and his breaths were at 72 per minute. Normal ranges are anywhere from 20-40. The concern is that the baby is working so hard to breathe and it is so difficult to do so that they end up just giving up and stop breathing. The oxygen levels can also be low which is of obvious concern.
The doctor came in to examine Patrick and diagnosed him from across the room, just based on how he sounded. He was retracting so much that you could see it through his clothes, they didn't even undress him. They gave him a breathing treatment, which he didn't respond to. After a couple of hours they gave him a steroid. This finally seemed to help. The doctor returned to ask me if I wanted to admit Patrick to be hospitalized. I wasn't sure what to do because while I would have loved to bring him home, I feared having to come back again a few hours later if Patrick got worse again. In the end, I did take him home as the doctor advised that Patrick would be at risk of being exposed to Pneumonia, croup, and other diseases there in the hospital. She said that since I was a competent mom we would be okay at home. Thank goodness for competence! That and for my sister who is a Pediatric Nurse who is really the one that tells me what to do. :)
It was a long haul and we were on pins and needles for the next several days just watching Patrick struggle for breath. We returned to the Pediatrician's office a day or so after the ER for another breathing treatment, but he didn't respond to that either. It took nearly two weeks, but he finally seemed to recover. Poor baby. Here is a video of Patrick wheezing. This was a couple of days after the ER visit. His breathing was pretty under control here, so if you can imagine the wheezing being about twice as loud and the breathing about twice as fast then you can have an idea of why we went to the ER. So scary, but we are glad that he is fine now.
11 years ago
5 comments:
Wow! That must have been such a hard time. So glad that he is doing good now! Thanks for posting the video. Many times we just aren't sure what to look for.
Poor guy! And I should say poor you! It is so hard when the little guys are sick. I'm so glad that he is all better!
That is scary. Joci never had retractions like that. Glad he's all better.
how scary, Julie! Sounds like your Christmas holiday was filled with many sleepless nights for you : ( Glad it is getting better. Thanks for posting the video - Sophie never got RSV so now I at least know what to look for in the next babies ; ) (whenever that may be!)
How freaking scary!!! I can't imagine his breathing could be worse than in that video! You totally deserve the mother of the year award! You are such a trooper Julie! I am awed and inspired by you!
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