• Watch colds and other illness closely. Seek immediate medical attention for fever above 100.4º F in infants younger than 6 weeks, or if illness interferes with your baby’s ability to breathe, eat or sleep. If your baby develops croup – a swelling of the area below the voice box, causing a cough that sounds like a barking seal – Shapiro recommends 10 minutes outdoors in the night air or 10 minutes in a steamy shower to relieve coughing spasms. If that doesn’t work, however, it’s time to head for the ER. And if your baby is sick and you aren’t sure what to do, calling your doctor is probably better than a stint in the pediatric waiting room with others who might be ill. Shapiro says most babies develop a cold sometime during the first months of life, and many of these illnesses are mild, so calling first will also save you some trouble. Structural Problems – Most serious structural problems with babies’ airways (being born with completely blocked nasal passages, for instance) are caught in the delivery room, or in the hospital before the baby goes home. About 10 percent, however, are born with a less-serious condition called laryngomalacia. This means the tissue above the voice box is unusually
soft, causing the baby to occasionally make noisy clucking or choking sounds. The baby’s breathing is otherwise normal, and the baby isn’t bothered by the noise, though it can distress parents. Most babies with laryngomalacia don’t require treatment and outgrow it as the tissue firms up, usually by age 6 months. A very small percentage of these babies need surgery to correct the problem.
No Need To Hover Up to 90 percent of children will, at some point, have a breathing problem, Shapiro notes in her book. Watching your baby struggle to breathe can be terrifying, and knowing what to do about it is essential. But if your baby isn’t struggling, there’s no need for obsessive monitoring. During infancy, babies wake often enough for feeding and diaper changes that you’ll have plenty of chances to make sure yours is breathing easy. So take a deep breath, relax and leave the cribside (but we’ll understand if you can’t resist just a peek). ■ Christina Elston is a senior editor with Dominion Parenting Media. Find her Health-E blog at Parenthood.com.
DR. CARMEN T. GARZA PEDIATRICS NEW LOCATION 2829 Babcock Rd #438 San Antonio, TX 78229 om josephineruizhealymd.com
(210) 692-9471
Serving Schertz, New Braunfels, and San Antonio areas. Providing ABA, Speech, OT, and PT. Specializing in Autism, Developmental Disabilities, and Challenging Behaviors
210-858-9062 www.rehababa.com March 2012 | OurKidsSanAntonio.com
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