Repeat Pneumonia in 16Mo. Old

My oldest son, who is now 12, had pneumonia when he was 23 months and then again when he was 27 months. (It was June and October, so also not cold/winter months.) He has mild asthma and was probably more susceptible to it. She is a little young for an asthma diagnosis, but you might want them to look into that if she continues to have problems. My son is on medications, but his asthma is very well controlled and there have been no permanent effects from the two bouts of pneumonia. He hasn't had it since. I think continuing the nebulizer treatments for the winter sounds like a good idea and if you need any tips on giving those treatments to a toddler feel free to send me a message. My son started his treatments at about that age and I know it can be a little challenging at times. Good luck and I hope she feels better soon.

This is going to be long...When my son was 6 months old (October) he was diagnosed with his first respitory infection. He continued to have just about every one you can imagine including pneumonia twice. He was also hospitalized twice. My dr. continue to tell me to do breating treatments and give him antibiotics and he never really got over it. My dr. no longer seemed concerned that he could not breath, so i took him for a second opinion. The new dr said that he thought he had a mis-shaped trachea. Instead of being circular it was squished. Sorry, I can't remember what he called it. You hear the raspiness when they breath in instead of when they breath out. They quit giving him antibiotics and he seems to be better ( hasn't been on any since may!! This is the first time we made it more that 14days! ) My ENT told me that they just grow out of it. We do have to do a neb every once in a while when he's getting a cold but not daily! Good luck and hang in there! And never feel bad in getting a second opinion!

Hi L.,
I'm a second year medical student and I happen to be studying both pneumonia bacterias and probiotics right now. I went to a talk today about how they are starting to use probiotics even in the hospitals now, with great success, so I would suggest if your child has taken any sort of antibiotics, that she be given a good quality probiotic like Jarrow for Kids or something equivalent. Yogurt is good, however dairy products can increase mucus production and a good probiotic formula will deliver many more organisms, which can have a preventative effect. In addition, there are many bacteria that are becoming quite resistant to many antibiotics, and these are out in our communities now in greater and greater quantities. Make sure that they do a full sputum culture with gram staining and drug sensitivity testing. It might cost a bit more, but it is well worth it if your child is having a remission to figure out exactly which organism is causing the disease and what drugs will be effective on it. If your doc doesn't take this seriously, or it isn't going anywhere, get another opinion. Find a recommendation from another parent if possible on their doc that they LOVE! Finally, the person who suggested it could be structural, like trachea shape or a collapsed lung have valid points and any excellent physician is going to be concerned about these possibilities as well. Be your and your child's best advocate, don't hesitate to ask questions, and if your doctor's office isn't a comfortable place to have discussions and ask questions, you should try to find another doctor anyway. Health care is too important, and everyone needs to be working together as a team to find the best solutions. Best of luck to you!

We have had problems with my son having pneumonia when he was younger and I found that the basic washing of hands before they eat, doing the neb treatments and getting them started on a multivitamin, even at 16 months, especially if he goes to daycare, helped tremendously.
Other things is being proactive for your child with the physicians helps. Actually bacterial pneumonia is more common when seasons are changing b/c it is warm yet and the bacteria/virus is more mobile at these times.
Good Luck

HI.
Our daughter went through the same experience. In our situation we went to the dr/ER once a month each time coming away with the diagnosis of pneumonia. So we did the neb treatments, watched her carefully etc (our also started in the Fall)... To make a long story short, while we were visiting in-laws that lived out of town, she had another episode. So, we took her back into the ER and explained that this has been continual for the last 6 months, and it would "go away, then get better" After some more x-rays and tests, they said that she didn't have pneumonia, but she had a partially collapsed lung due to asthma and was hospitalized for a week!
So, here's my advice to you....ask the dr. to look again at her x-rays and if she continues to have more bouts of pneumonia, go and get a 2nd opinion. It's been 3 years now and she is doing so much better! AND no more "pneumonia" Her asthma meds have made a complete difference.
Oh, we actually had a few nurses tell us that we didn't want the diagnosis of asthma because it would be more expensive, and blah blah blah....ya if you run into any of those, ignore them...and remind them that breathing is a good thing. (sorry, just so frustrated during our whole process)
Good Luck!

I had Double Pnumonia in January. I was sick for several weeks on antibiotics. About a month after I was "better," it snuck back up on me. My doc said it isn't uncommon for it to come back and need another round of anitbiotics.
I'd suggest keeping your little one as mellow as possible. LOL. I know that's impossible. But, forgo the extra activities for a couple of weeks and try to keep a low schedule. The less she's doing the better.
From what I experienced, she's gotta feel HORRIBLE. Hoping she's on the mend soon! :)

L.,

My son has had a lot of difficulties with breathing when he gets a cold (mostly in the winter) but never has had full blown pneumonia. However last fall the doctor put him on Pulmicort once a day and albuterol once a day. If he gets a cold the doctor wants us to give him albuterol 2x/day. This has helped tremendously. We only have to stay on the regimen through the winter months but in August my son got a nasty cold too with terrible cough and had difficulty breathing again. We just put him right back on the albuterol. He also got a steroid from the doctor but that seemed to only help a little. I don't know if they outgrow this as they get older but hopefully because Pulmicort is not a cheap drug!

Echinacea is supposed to help boost the immune system. I was just doing a little bit of studying on the herb since I was thinking of buying some to make a tincture and it's even listed in the Physician's Desk Reference of Herbs as an effective herb for pneumonia.

Homeopathy does wonders for strengthening the immune system. it is considered standard medicine in Europe. We have excellent family practice homeopathists available to us now.

Hi.. I am a nana of 5 and have one that was just having the same problems.It ends up that she had to have her tonsils and adnoids taken out.She will be 2yrs old in October,but has been sick for quit awhile.So you may want to going to a different doctor and see what that say.I know the the doctor that did her surgery was very upset with the doctor she had been seeing because what that little girl had went through could have been avoided.It's just a thought.I hope you get the help you need. K.

L. - I don't have direct experience with repeat pneumonia for my children but we did have repeat ear infections. Knowing what I know now (hide sight is always 20/20), I would have taken them to a chiropractor much earlier in their life.

chiropractor care can make a huge difference for everyone but it's especially important for children. Plus some chiropractors can make recommendations for nutritionals that could make a difference for your daughter in keeping her immune system healthy.

If you need a recommendation for a good pediatric chiropractor in the south metro area, let me know.

Best to you,

D.

Our son started the same way and last yr we ended up in the hospital for 4 days(last sept). We where told that he had RAD and was refererd to Childrens respiratory and critical care. Now he has asthma but these Drs are great they believe that the parent knows there children and give us the meds Before they are sick to start treating the sysmtoms right away and not have to go into the DR. All I have to do is call the nurse line and let them know he is getting sick. He still goes from cold to asthma attack so fast but it has kept us home and out of the office or hospital and he recovers quickly. He is will turn 2 in Oct. I understand how hard it is to have a little one sick so much. Let me know if you want there number
Good luck K.

My son was diagoned with RAD (reactive airway disease), which is a cold induced asthma. He had pneumonia, bronchial infections, sinus infections and ear infections. He was finally diagnosed. So every time he gets a cold he gets a nasty cough. Our option is to start him on a nebulizer whenever he gets a cold. It helps him recover faster. Although sometimes it's so bad he has to go to the Dr and they give him a steroid and we continue with that and the nebulizer. However it is something they can outgrow. Our son is now 4 (he's had RAD since before he was 2) and his colds are better and better. The last cold he had he didn't even get a cough.