Bronchiolitis Diagnosis: What You Need to Know For Your Infant

Caring for an infant is hard work. One of the biggest hurdles we can face as parents is caring for a sick child. Not only is the baby sick, fussy, and tired, but very often so are we. Caring for a baby with bronchiolitis has its own unique challenges.

Bronchiolitis occurs most often in infants, and it is a relatively common malady during the fall and winter months. According to MayoClinic.com, bronchiolitis is an infection of the lungs' airways. Symptoms of bronchiolitis often start out like a cold, but soon progress to coughing and wheezing. In our experience, severe bouts of coughing also led to vomiting, posing a risk of dehydration.

My son was diagnosed with bronchiolitis when he was just three months old. When he was six weeks old, he had suffered from viral meningitis, so we knew that any illness could be extremely serious for him. When he came down with cold-like symptoms that included congestion and a productive cough, we decided to take him to the doctor right away. The same morning we scheduled the doctor's appointment, we learned that several children in his daycare class had bronchiolitis.

When we visited the doctor, our son was immediately diagnosed with bronchiolitis and a double ear infection. He was prescribed an oral steroid, antibiotics, and albuterol breathing treatments. The doctor informed us that he would likely be at the worst point in the illness at the fifth day, and to expect him to get worse before he got better. We were instructed to give him breathing treatments around the clock every three to four hours, keep him hydrated, and keep a cool mist humidifier running where he was sleeping. We were also told to monitor his respiration rate. We scheduled another appointment for a few days later for a second evaluation.

When caring for a sick child, it can be very easy to forget to give medicine or treatments, or to get off schedule. We made a schedule for our son, and tracked some essential information for our benefit and for the doctor's benefit. The information we kept track of included: (1) when we fed him and how much he ate; (2) whether he was able to keep down the formula he ingested; (3) how many wet diapers and soiled diapers he had and when; (4) when he took his medicine and whether he kept it down; and (5) when he got his breathing treatments. Even when we were exhausted or a sitter came to help, we always had the same schedule and information to fill in.

In our experience with our infant son's bronchiolitis, we also found that certain things helped make him more comfortable. He slept better upright in his swing or in his car seat. In addition, saline nasal drops helped ease his nasal congestion. Finally, we found that gently patting him on the back helped loosen his chest congestion and calmed him during more severe bouts of coughing.

Dealing with childhood illnesses, especially with infants, can be frightening and exhausting. Perhaps one of the most important things that you can do for your child is to establish a good support system that includes a doctor that you trust to give you attention and competent care. For the several months that we contended with our son's bronchiolitis and his many relapses, we were confident that we had the expert advice from our son's doctors that we needed.

Sources:

MayoClinic.com, "Bronchiolitis," Mayo Clinic Staff.