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nigele
11-02-2002, 09:18 PM
My 4 month old DS has had bad night time nasal congestion for almost three weeks now. It wakes him up several times a night and he cries, snorts and occasionally gasps for air. It is very frightening for both of us. I took him to his ped when it first started and she said he did not have a cold but told me to use Infant Pedia Care decongestant as needed. A week and a half later, he had a terrible episode on a Sunday night and I called the ped who said he probably did have a bad cold after all. She recommended letting him sleep in his bouncy seat and continue to give him Pedia Care as needed. Neither of these make any difference. I don't think he does have a cold since he has absolutely no symptoms during the day and the only symptom at night is the congestion. I tried to find information in my infant care books and on the web but the only thing I can come up with, besides a cold, is enlarged adenoids or tonsils. Does anybody have experience with this? I don't know if I'm over-reacting and/or over-researching but I am really concerned and can't sleep well at night worrying. DS has his 4 month checkup on Monday and we will talk to the ped about this and probably ask for a referral to an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist. Thanks for any advice you can give me!

egoldber
11-02-2002, 10:35 PM
My DD had a similar issue. There was a period of time (right around 3 months) when it seemed like she was ALWAYS congested at night. It did interfere with her sleep sometimes as well (although it sounds like your baby is a bit worse than Sarah was). When it was very bad I used the saline nose drops before bed. My ped said some babies are just prone to this. She did eventually outgrow it after a couple months. Definitely talk to your ped of course, but hopefully it will turn out to be nothing.

HTH,

candybomiller
11-03-2002, 12:54 AM
It seems like my son has been congested since he was born! Our ped said it's likely that he has small nasal passages and there wasn't really anything I could do about it. Of course I didn't like that very much, so he said that if I had to do something, get a humidifier and leave it running in ds's room all the time. So, we've had a humidifier running for 5 months straight now. Has it helped? Can't say for sure. Do I feel better for trying? You betcha. If it's at all dry where you live, try a humidifier.

Candy
-SAHM to Matthew Nicholas, born 5/22/02

jojo2324
11-03-2002, 11:12 AM
You poor thing! I have been going through similar distress, but during the day. I'm sure nighttime is much more alarming. I would try the nasal drops too. Also, do you keep your house very warm? We've had our room pretty cool at night these past few weeks. I've been told both steam and cool mist help. Each side says the other does nothing. I bring DS into the bathroom while I shower and we go for small walks around town. He's still coughing.

Have you thought about getting a second opinion? Three weeks is a long time for a ped to not really classify it as anything, even if it is just a bad cold. From your posts the ped seems to be pretty blase about it (JMO, not trying to offend). Obviously he won't be as concerned as a first time mommy with her first cold, but has he done any tests? Not trying to make your son go through unnecessary examinations, but I always like to rule stuff out and know exactly what it is I'm dealing with.

I don't want to scare you at all, but I've been dealing with this now for two weeks and have had to deal with the pulmonologist, nebulizer, peds every two-three days, etc. One thing my ped and the pulmonologist said is that if the baby is waking up because the coughing is so severe, there is cause for concern.

Here's the thread where I described what was going on and the signs of trouble. Maybe it is just a really bad bout of congestion, but you're right to be concerned. Good luck...please keep us posted! I'll be thinking of you!

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dcforum/DCForumID30/240.html#6

nigele
11-03-2002, 05:17 PM
Thanks for all the replies. I have tried saline, cool humidifier, warm humidifier, taking DS in the bathroom with hot shower running (doesn't help the congestion but does calm him down) and also using a bulb suction-thing. None of these help the congestion. I do plan to push the issue with the ped tomorrow. Just one more night of worrying before I (hopefully) get an answer.

Joanne - I read your message about your problems when you first posted it. How is Gannon doing now?

jojo2324
11-06-2002, 02:35 AM
Lisa, what did the ped say? Did you get to see a specialist? How's Thomas?

nigele
11-06-2002, 10:13 AM
Joanne,

Thanks for checking on us! The ped still thinks Thomas has regular nighttime congestion. She gave us a prescription for a decongestant/antihistamine and told me if it does not help over the next week, I should call her Monday and she will refer him to an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist. The last two nights, his congestion has gotten better, although it is still there. I hate to give him another drug and will wait another night to see how he is doing. If he is still congested tonight, I'll try the prescription tomorrow. (He has had to take a bunch of meds in his short life, not to mention being exposed via breastmilk to a daily medicine I have to take so I feel so bad about pumping him up with something else if he may not need it.) She also does not think his waking up 5-6 times a night has anything to do with not being able to breathe well (she thinks I am misreading his symptoms - nice, huh??) but rather his inability to soothe himself to sleep. She wants me to wait until the congestion is worked out before starting him on a sleep program, which is just fine with me!

On a funny note, the day before his appointment, I called a friend and asked how I should describe the stuff in his nose to the doctor (I was too embarrassed to say the word "boogers!") Well, before I could bring up the subject with the doctor, she asked me "does he have boogers in his nose?" LOL!

Thanks again for thinking of us!

luvbeinmama
11-10-2002, 07:48 PM
Try raising the head of his bed. I know, if he's in a crib, he'll probably turn around and end up head down, but it's worth a try. DD (3 1/2 weeks now) has a bit of congestion at night, too (not as bad as yours, though), and that has helped her. Just put a rolled up towel under the mattress.

daisymommy
11-10-2002, 08:30 PM
Heres a question for you Joanne and Lisa--
Do your babies only get this congestion at night after you've fed them and laid them back down to sleep? Before I say anymore, let me know.

nigele
11-11-2002, 01:36 PM
Amy,

No - my DS's "congestion" now happens every time he wakes up from a sleep - nighttime and naptime. He wakes up trying to scream, breathing heavily through his nose (sounding congested,) snorting and rubbing his nose like mad with his hands. The only thing that helps is waking him up completely. I have tried all the cold and allergy remedies and nothing has helped. We had a horrible, really scary night last night and this afternoon we have an appointment with an Ear, Nose & Throat doctor. I am so frustrated with our ped since this has been going on for four weeks and she didn't seem concerned. I feel just horrible that I didn't insist on seeing the ENT sooner. I am really nervous about what the specialist might say so wish me luck!

jojo2324
11-11-2002, 10:36 PM
Amy, our congestion was an all-day occurence, but it seemed worse at night. Maybe it wasn't as bad, just I'm worry more at nighttime. Unlike Lisa and Tommy, Gannon's problem has pretty much completely resolved itself. I think that it was really just a viral infection that needed time to heal and nothing else, despite our attempts. Lisa, good luck tomorrow, glad that you are finally going to the ENT...Keep us posted!

daisymommy
11-12-2002, 10:53 AM
I'm glad Gannon's feeling better! Don't you hate the feeling of having no control over something your baby is suffering with, and all you can do is just sit back and wait for time to take it's course with things? Lisa, good luck as well at the ENT DR. hope you get some answers finally.
Josh wakes up trying to cry/scream in the middle of the night, and is unable to breathe through his nose sometimes. He has this terrified look on his face, and gets all panicky trying to take in air. He also makes these congested weazy sounds. We found out it was his reflux. Babies with reflux when they're laying down will reflux up their milk/food and sometimes it will go into their nasal passages (unable to breathe through nose), and sometimes a little into their lungs! Hense, the weazy congested sound. Sometimes it sits in the back of their throat and causes congestion and snoaring sounds, especially since they don't know how to clear their throat like an adult. These nightime scares is part of the reason we still have Josh in his cosleeper next to our bed.
Your babies probably don't have Josh's problem, but I thought I'd just let you know some possibilities that exist out there!

nigele
11-12-2002, 12:43 PM
Amy,

Thanks for the info. Thomas's problem is still a mystery, even after seeing the ENT. After I described the sypmptoms to the ENT, he was sure it would be his tonsils and/or his adenoids but he found both were perfectly fine. My poor little baby had to endure a HORRIBLY uncomfortable exam - he had a tube with a camera on the end stuck all the way up his nose and down his throat. Needless to say, he screamed down the house. My husband and I were in total shock over the whole thing. (I had surgery for a deviated septum a couple of years ago and know how terrible it feels to have things stuck way up there.) Anyway, the ENT is sending us for a sleep study at Duke but they are booked up for the next month. The doctor is hoping Thomas's problem will resolve itself by the time we have our sleep study appointment.

Joanne! I'm so glad Gannon is better!

nigele
12-11-2002, 09:45 PM
We spent last night at the hospital for an overnight test and finally got an answer to DS's congestion and sleeping problems. It turns out that he has reflux which is also causing sleep apnea. He has now had his symptoms for two months and had a sleep study scheduled for January. I got fed up with his having to suffer and having a terrible time sleeping and called the hospital last week to see if they could get us in sooner. Luckily, they were able to get us in last night to do an overnight test that might give results instead of waiting for the sleep study. Even though they told me the test was pretty simple, I thought it was horrible - DS had a tube up his nose that went down into his esophagus overnight to measure PH levels after his feedings. They inserted the tube at 3:00 p.m. and he screamed when they inserted it, turned red and could not be consoled for 20 minutes. We were both crying and traumatized by the whole thing. He had to have it in until 8:15 this morning. He gagged on it whenever he woke up and his sleeves were taped shut so he could not pull it out even though he spent the night desperately trying to. I spent all day and night lying with him feeling terrible for having pushed the issue with the doctors and worried that it would turn out to be regular baby congestion which the ped first suspected. I felt terrible that I might have caused him the pain and discomfort by insisting that his problems were something more significant. Anyway, sorry to go on and on. They gave him two prescriptions and hopefully he will get some relief. I guess a lot of babies don't need all these tests but his symptoms were not classic of reflux, so it was more difficult to find the cause. I am so glad this is over!

jojo2324
12-11-2002, 09:56 PM
Oh Lisa, I'm so happy to hear that. I can't imagine how awful you must have felt while he struggled with the tube. But know that it needed to be done and now you have an answer to your problems. I hope things improve! Catch some ZZZs now that Tommy can!

twins r fun
12-12-2002, 10:52 AM
Yeah! Good for you for pushing for the test sooner. Sorry to hear it was so traumatic for you and your son. We didn't find it too bad but then our sons were still pretty oblivious to the world (1 month) and we'd all been slightly desensitized by all the prior sticking, poking, and inserting. What did they prescribe for him? Zantac and Reglan? Are they doing anything for the apnea or just figuring the medicine will work it out. Hopefully you will find the medicine to be effective-it was for us- and be able to get on a normal sleep schedule. Reflux also seems to improve as they get older, especially once they start sitting up independently. Hope all goes smoothly from here.

Nicole