Bronchiolitis

Cohen was diagnosed with bronchiolitis today, Monday, Dec. 18, 2006. This means his little air way is inflamed and swollen and filled with mucous.

He has a fever, coughing, loss of appetite, vomiting, and difficulty breathing. Dehydration is a huge concern during this time. He's drinking fluids, but certainly not the amount he would normally consume.

He sounds terrible. You can hear him struggle to breathe. His little nose is scabbed because it's so raw from being running or stuffy. It stays crusted with mucous which hinders his breathing further. (Tonight, I removed what looked like a corn flake from his nose. ugghh...)He coughs so hard it makes him puke sometimes.

There is little you can do treat Bronchiolitis. Antibiotics don't work because it's a viral infection. We have to just wait it out while his body fights it off. We can treat his symptoms with cough medicine, Tylenol, plenty of fluids and a humidifer, all of which we are doing.

The majority of infants who have this get well on their own and require no medical treatment. A small percentage, however, may have to be hospitalized if breathing worsens or if dehydration occurs.

Cohen is a sick little boy, but he's handling it very well and is still able to have some fun amid his illness. Please pray he'll be well before he develops a more serious case of the illness. He was sick over Thanksgiving, I pray he'll be well for Christmas.

You can read more about it at:
http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/infections/bacterial_viral/bronchiolitis.html