for mums with kids with asthma..help

[MikaylasMummy]

my lo is on just gone 12 months old but on and off since he was four months he has had a nasty cough and lots of chest congestion/rattling. he had two bouts of diagnosed bronciollitis both hospitalised once rsv positive. his dad also has asthma which is still medicated to this day. since his last hospitalisation he has still gotten his cough/chest but none bad enough to land in hospital i think he is getting a bit bigger and can handle it better.
but now he has a really really bad cough he really struggles with breath while he is coughing and his coughing fits last up to 30 seconds even longer sometimes and in between coughs you can hear him sucking him breaths like two quick sucks in that make loud noises. but the problem is how the heck do i get a doctor to give a proper diagnosis or get them to understand just how bad it can be when they may not get to see it in the ten minute consultation im there?it is getting to the point now that i honestly think he may need to see a peadiatrician now rather than wait til he is old enough to officially have asthma because this particular cough is a bit worrying..
any advice? what did you do with your kids when they were this young and did they show signs this early?did you get any treatments for them apart from oxygen therapy when sats are low which we can only get at the hospital?
i hope someone has some ideas as i am stuck on what to do next

 

[moomin_troll]

zanes never had broncitus but he used to get the rattling in his chest and really bad coughs, hed struggle to breath. everytime he got a simple cold it would turn into a infection and effect his chest and everytime id take him to the docs/hospital and they would never help. one doctor did perscribe him a blue inhaler which did help if he got really bad, but they would never do or say more then its a infection

when hed get bad id close my bathroom door and run the hot tap to steam up the room and sit in there with zane and the steam would clear his chest, so id try that to help him breath abit better before bed.

luckly zane has grown out of this so hopefuly ur lo will grow out of it and it might not be asthma

 

[TattiesMum]

I was going to suggest the steam therapy as well ... moist air is much easier to breathe

a vaporiser for the bedroom is a good idea too and I would go back to your doctor and demand a referral ... if he is resistant then contact the consultant that you LO was under when in the hospital and see if that gets you anywhere.

 

[MikaylasMummy]

thanks for your reply hun. because of his two bronc diagnosis and the rsv the docs are pretty certain he is on track for asthma but i pray he is not!!the thing is his congestion is not the main issue its not constant its more just when he has a coughing attack he cant get any air in.then he will be ok for a while.so im not sure steam would help at the moment cos its not so much about the congestion more about the cough =( so annoying!i think i might have to keep my camera handy for a while and try and film a fit so i can show the doc and they can actually see it and tell me what they think

 

[MikaylasMummy]

I was going to suggest the steam therapy as well ... moist air is much easier to breathe

a vaporiser for the bedroom is a good idea too and I would go back to your doctor and demand a referral ... if he is resistant then contact the consultant that you LO was under when in the hospital and see if that gets you anywhere.

i think i could get a referal if i asked for one i havnt asked yet.i just would really like them to be able to see it cos it is such asthma behaviour(my oh has it and knows the difference between coughs/colds and asthma) i might have to get the vapouriser going again at night.since its warmer here the congestion is there but not as bad and not the cause of the problem but i might see if it will help the cough at night.and during the day hel just have to cough away. i just hate the vapouriser cos EVERYTHING gets wet and no matter how much i air out the room and wipe it down the roof gets covered in mould!!

 

[TattiesMum]

How about videoing the night time coughing on your phone so that you can show the doctor exactly what you are worried about?

Moist air should help ease the cough as well ... it works well for that with croup ... and perhaps look into buying a humidifier instead of the vaporiser? they use cool moisture so things don't get so wet ... they even do an evaporative one which maintains a constant moisture level in a room

The other advantage to keeping the air moist is that it will damp down pollens/dust and other airborne allergens which might help too. My mother always used to hang dampened flannel sheets from my sister's bedroom door and window in the summer as well to reduce allergens coming into the room to start with (her main trigger was pollens)

 

[MikaylasMummy]

great idea thanks!i will look into getting one.unfortunatly my phone was dropped in a soapy sink this weekend so i have an old one right now with no video..grrr!i am getting another one for the time being tomorrow so i might try and capture it and take it in.thanks!

 

[MikaylasMummy]

just thought id update for anyone who was wondering =) koby had his 12months needles and check up and i mentioned to the dr about his cough and his history and the doc had a good listen of his chest and thankfully at the time he could actually hear the wheeze. as its not always present its hard to get a doctor to listen!he has refered us back to our peadiatrician for monitering. he said it could be "pre asthma" or something iv heard a lot of docs mention that they call a "fat happy wheeze". given kobys history and his dads asthma i think he will have it but i can only hope he wont.and besides koby although he looks a decent size hes certainly not fat and he is just under the 50th percentile for his height and weight!so he's not too fat for his height or fat at all really.

 

[TattiesMum]

Thanks for the update ... I was wondering how you and LO were getting along with the cough

Great that the doctor actually heard the wheeze ... at least now if you have any problems you know that you will be taken seriously