Luke kept getting sicker and sicker, so I took him BACK to the doctor. (actually my hubs did) He has asthmatic bronchitis. I feel so bad for him. He can't sleep for all the coughing he is doing. He is barely eating, I think because of the albuterol maybe? I just got his steriod prescription filled today, so I hope that will make him feel better in a hurry.


The doctor said not to be too concerned about asthma right now, we will have to just watch him and see how he reacts to colds in the future.

I am worried though, because my sister has sever asthma and I have seen how it affects her life. She can't come over because of all the pet hair/dander we have (3 dogs, 1 cat). Should I consider getting rid of some of our pets? I would HATE HATE HATE to, but I don't want to give Luke breathing problems. If he does end up having asthma, can he live around all that dander? Because no matter how much you clean, with that many animals, it is still EVERYWHERE.


It is amazing what one sick baby can do to a normally clean house. My house is a wreck, and the laundry is so backed up that I'm wearing my oldest, rattiest, least favorite jeans. I am a walking zombie right now.
Thanks for listening (reading!), and for any asthma/pet advice you have.

By Ginny~moderator on Tuesday, October 2, 2007 - 10:01 pm:

My son Scott (who is now 40) has asthma. I say "has" because an asthmatic always has asthma, just that it can go into remission. Scott is usually in remission but when he gets a bad cold he has to be very careful. He has had bronchial pneumonia a couple of times because of his underlying asthma weakness and had to be on heavy antibiotics each time.

By Crystal915 on Tuesday, October 2, 2007 - 11:38 pm:

I wouldn't worry too much. Shane had one attack at 10 months of asthmatic bronchitis, and was using a nebulizer, and the albuterol inhaler, and prednisone drops during that attack. We have had to use the prednisone maybe 2 other times since then during bad colds, and honestly, it's because he has small airways. I'd keep it in mind, and mention to docs in the future, but it doesn't mean he'll be a full blown asthmatic. We have 2 cats and a sugar glider, and Shane has NO problems with any of them!!

By Debbie on Wednesday, October 3, 2007 - 11:03 am:

Even if he is asthmatic, it doesn't necessarily mean that your animals are the trigger. Unfortunately for us, my youngest is highly allergic to dog dander, which triggers his asthma. Therefore, we can not have a dog. It could just be that colds trigger it, or it could just be a single episode. Both of my dks have asthma. The only trigger for my oldest is allergy/cold issues. So, he now has an asthma action plan, which keeps everything under control. So, I guess my point is, don't rush to conclusions now. Your ds is still very young. It could just be an isolated incident. Or, even if he does have asthma, animals may not be one of his triggers.

(((hugs))) I hope your ds is feeling better soon. And, hopefully you will get a full nights sleep soon.

By Jelygu on Wednesday, October 3, 2007 - 06:54 pm:

Thnks guys... I know I shouldn't worry too much about it right now, but it's hard not too.
He is sleeping a little better, so I feel less like a zombie today!

By Mrsheidi on Wednesday, October 3, 2007 - 10:36 pm:

Jen, not to scare you, but our dog was our trigger and we were in and out of the hospital for 1.5 years.
I would ask the doctor to get Luke referred to an allergist and have his skin tested. It's worth the money up front to prevent hospital visits later on. You will also have peace of mind. The prednisone/steroids are REALLY BAD for him and I wish I had known all of this when Connor was 14 months old when he had his first bronchiolitis.
Doctors are always hesitant to diagnose allergies before the age of 3, yet they are ok with prescribing harmful steroids time after time. I finally got a smart doctor who mentioned asthma and we did Pulmicort during the cold season every day. Now, after we found out his allergy to dogs, we had to give her to a new home but we don't have any hospital visits anymore. Once you see your child with purple lips, you just do what you can.

When the dog or cat licks him, does he break out? Did/Does he have excema? Excema is usually a good sign that he'll have allergies down the road.

And, to be clear, it's not always the dander. Connor is allergic to ANYTHING belonging to a dog so when she licked him, he broke out like crazy.

By Trina~moderator on Thursday, October 4, 2007 - 09:46 am:

To echo the others, I highly recommend seeing an Asthma/Allergy specialist. Ours have been very helpful! My DS was sick a lot with ear infections, pneumonia and what our ped. thought was croup. In Gr. 1 he ended up in the hospital for 3 days. That's where we learned it was actually asthma. After allergy testing we learned one of his triggers is cats. We had 5 at the time. After dropping down to 2 cats, putting a HEPA air cleaner in his bedroom and taking Claritin and asthma maintenance meds he has been MUCH healthier.

DD was diagnosed with asthma in Gr. 2. Although she's not allergic to cats, she's allergic to dogs and tree pollen. She takes Allegra and asthma maintenance meds.