Got the news I was kinda expecting....

Aiden has had issues with a wicked cough with ANY cold since January. In January, his cough lasted a month & worsened to the point where he could not even really run around & play anymore. So, our Ped prescribed an as needed inhaler (Albuterol). We've had to use it off & on over the months ANY time he got sick & usually always at night. I had a gut feeling the kid was going to be diagnosed with asthma, but they've been trying to avoid it.

Fast forward to this week, yet another cold & awful nights of no sleep. Took him into the on call Peds clinic yesterday & the on call doc pretty much said asthma. We started him on twice daily inhalers (Flovent---a steroid) & then scheduled his Albuterol for a while (in a tapered schedule). When I mentioned that I think he has seasonal allergies (he also has eczema & gets runny noses when we're outside), he started him on Zyrtec (for allergies).

I'm bummed...I was SO hoping he'd outgrow this. I'm not thrilled about pumping him full of all these meds either. I need to schedule an appt with a Ped Allergist to ensure his asthma isn't caused by some allergen (which I think part of it is) & I dread that. I have such traumatic memories of my allergy testing as a child that I hate to have him endure that. Ugh.

So, this is just my whine...I hate seeing my kiddos sick. On the positive side, after starting his inhalers & meds, he's a new kid! He took a 3 hour nap yesterday without coughing & slept ALL night with very few coughs (and no bad 'fits')! I hope we're on the up swing!

 

It is so hard to have sick kids! Totally draining. And I totally hear you about how discouraging a long-term dx is.

I'm glad the new meds seem to be helping so much, though! I hope you keep seeing improvement like that.

(Oh, and can I ask a totally naive question? How do you get a toddler to take an inhaler? Just something I've always wondered!)

 

Sorry about the diangosis. My oldest has the triad (asthma, alleriges, eczema). He had a really tough 2-3 years from 18 months on. He is sooooo much better now. He only has wheezing episodes 2-3 times per year and usually related to being around cats. Eczema is very rare.
I am hoping he and your son will totally outgrow it.

As for the inhaler - he uses a spacer (about 6 inch plastic chamber between the medicine and a mask around kid's nose and mouth). Much quicker than nebulizers and studies show better delivery of medication as well.

 

I am by no means a doctor but I just wanted to share my experience, which sounds very similiar to yours!!
When my oldest was young every single time he got sick he would get the horrible cough and everything always turned into an upper respitory infection. He was treated with numerous rounds of antibiotics which worked for awhile but he had so many rounds of croup that I can't even count. We had the allergy tests done and they came back clear. We then had to take him to a Pediatric Pulmonoligist because everyone was sure that it was asthma. And we did have him on the same inhaler you did with the same meds. They did work and he didn't have as many coughing fits at night or in the early morning. It was also often that he would cough so hard that he'd vomit--I mean daily. Well we went and he ran some tests and I'm not sure what it was but something triggered him to send us to an ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat doctor). That was the best move EVER! They did a bunch of tests and his adnoids were HUGE HUGE HUGE!! He had significant hearing loss in both ears and they decided that he needed to have his tonsils, adnoids taken out and tubes put in.
He didn't have the "normal" symptoms, he didn't snore etc. Well they did the procedure the next week and omgosh did it make such a huge differance!! He hasn't had an upper respitory infection since! His adnoids were so big that they had me sign something so they could keep them and "show them off".
Not sure if you've already tried that route but maybe a trip to the ENT might be a good shot? Just a thought, your story reminded me so much of my Jon. And I remember so clearly when they told me he had asthma, I was so sad that he would have to deal with that! But it turned out not to be.
So many hugs to you and I'm so sorry that you're having to deal with this as well! Please keep us updated on the appointments! :grouphug:

 

wow, that is a lot of meds... a lot of these meds aren't tested on kids (for obvious reasons) so it's hard to know what else they are doing to kids (besides managing the symptoms).

I would encourage you to see what environmental factors may also be contributing/irritating his breathing. I've become a complete freak about trying to avoid all sorts of synthetics, chemicals, they are EVERYWHERE. We are working on the kids new beds - and i spent 45 minutes at Bed Bath and Beyond reading labels looking for items that were just cotton - no vinyl or polyester. And even stuff that is supposed to be better for people with allergies had added things you can't even figure out what they are.

But once you get through all the reading, these are simple things that may also help him feel better. Jake also is prone to breathing issues and that's part of why we are trying to be so diligent. I can't wait to get rid of their crib mattresses!

 

My MIL is diligent with environmental factors, too, & is always on our case about our house, our cleaning supplies, our lotions, our bedding, our pets, our food, etc. I've heard a lot & she emails me article after article, so I've read up on these things A LOT!

That being said, I'm not 100% convinced it's asthma. He has the same illness his brother had, only with worse symptoms. And the fact that he's doing better could totally correlate to the end of his illness OR to his inhalers. Unfortunately, there's no knowing. I need to talk to MY Ped about it more. He has been sick maybe twice since January, so he's had a GREAT winter. It's just that everything settles into his chest. I have NO problems medicating him when he has symptoms, but I have a hard time giving him an inhaled steroid twice a day when his symptoms aren't there. I need to do a lot more research into that.

As for the Zyrtec, the only reason I agreed to that is because the Ped felt it could exacerbate his asthma symptoms (which I agree with). However, despite the fact that I've assumed he has allergies for years now, I've never treated him in the past. MY Ped feels that treating is mainly necessary when it EFFECTS the kids, which it never does with Aiden. I just have to throw Kleenex in my pocket if we're going outside . So, until he's over whatever he has, I'll use it...then, again, I'll look into it further & discuss it with our regular Ped. I also look forward to my conversation with the Ped Allergist.

Nateandbrig, thanks for your story. I've never taken him to an ENT (Conner has one for his ears), but it could be something to look into. Can't they see that in a regular exam though? Hmmm.

Nancy, you give me hope! Aiden has the 'triad', too. I'm praying he outgrows it. My husband has eczema & has had it his whole life. I had massive childhood allergies, all of which I essentially outgrew (I occasionally take a Zyrtec). I think a lot of it is in his genes!

Oh, and he also has a spacer with a mask for his inhaler. He's a champ & actually ASKS for it. I think it makes him feel so much better that he understands that and ASKS me to give it to him! My kids are weird, though, & always ask for medicine. Conner actually CRIED because Aiden got to use an inhaler & he didn't. Maybe it's because I'm a nurse & they know I give lots of meds...who knows.

Thanks for all your comments. I'm stressed about this & need to do more research. I'm no doctor, either, but I want to do what's best for my child so want multiple opinions. At our last doctor's visit, our Ped mentioned the steroid inhaler, so I'm wondering if he'll agree with the diagnosis, too. I also don't want "ASTHMA" stamped on his records if he truly doesn't have it. Ugh.

Thanks again for letting me whine!

 

We have been able to use the steriod BID only when a cold starts. We were on QD for awhile when he was having trouble but have had great success with only starting it when his trigger arrives (bad cold, being around cats, etc). I generally only have to use it for 4-7 days. My ped & allergist said a year dosage of the inhaled steriod is equal to one 3 day dose of orapred (oral steriod) we were having to use when things got bad.

 

:hug: I am sorry you are dealing with this. :hug:

 

:hug: Sounds very similar to our J's situation, and same meds too. Everytime they get a cold- his turns into a terrible night time cough. I was really against the meds for a long time, but then one of our good friends who is a ped said that without the proper treatment, his lungs can be permanantly damaged. YIKES! And he did say that there still is a chance that he'll get past it as he gets older. I am certainly hoping that's the case! And FWIW, for the first year or so he was on pulmicort respules (neb treatments) twice a day, and now he's on flovent. THe flovent seems to work SO MUCH better. He actually had a cold a month or so ago and didn't cough once! I think it has to be the flovent- since he started that about a month prior.

 

3 out of my 4 boys have allergies/asthma (including twins). They all have environmental allergies - dust, mold, cat, dog, spring weeds, etc. I found out with the twins the spring of the first year. They constantly had ear infections. They are now 2.5 and I had them allergy tested so that we knew what we were dealing with. They are on claritin every day. They didn't do well with zyrtec - made them irritable & tired. We too experience the terrible coughs when they have a cold (especially with my oldest son). I talked to the doc recently about using a non-med (ie. saline) in the nebulizer to loosen up (hate using drugs all the time) but didn't really get anywhere. If anyone has any tips on that, I would love to hear it.

 

Wow, that is a lot, I'm so sorry...

There are tons of things you can do to make your home more environmentally friendly...a few items:
1) no carpets
2) make sure the house isn't too humid as humidity breeds mold (dehumidifier)
3) Hepa filter air purifiers
4) I would look into limiting dairy (we have the kids on goats milk)
5) duct cleaning (with a hepa filter, no chemicals) can also help. I don't know where you live, but certain heating systems can make push out dusty bad air.

There are also drs who specialize in environmental type stuff - I don't what your budget is, but I have a friend who might be able to consult with you - I don't know what she charges. She knows a ton about mold and how to manage your environment w/out medication. Also, looking into mattresses and bedding. Simple cotton sheets are best, organic if you can do it. Nothing with polyester.

 

:hug: I hope he does outgrow it and I am glad the meds are giving him some relief right now. My DS has 2 out of the 3 of the triad (allergies and ezcema...) and I won't be surprised if we are told that he has asthma someday. I've had to keep him a lot in this summer because it's been so hot and humid and he'll start getting wheezy being outside.

 

Wow, :grouphug: that sounds so overwhelming! I know you just want him to feel better and that you'll make the best choices for him. It's just so hard when you don't really know about the asthma and it sounds like the doctors might not be certain in the diagnosis either. My kids have both taken liquid zyrtec off and off for seasonal allergies this year and we've noticed no side effects. Aidan also took singulair (prescription) last summer in an attempt to dry out the fluid in his ears. I also didn't notice side effects from it, although I have heard horror stories about how it can cause behavioral problems in young children.