anyone experienced noisy/stuffy breathing in newborn - poss layrnx??

[mad4mybaby]

ds2 is 6 weeks and since hes been born hes been very stuffy in his nose and snoring and snorting. i was told just newborn mucus. this went on and day before xmas eve he couldnt breath. next day went to gp who said chest and lungs clear and he was just catarrh and to keep doing what we were(steaming, nose drops etc) we bought an air humidifier aswell. anyway yesterday he was struggling to breath again so went to doc abd he said chest and lungs still fine and that the problem is from his neck upwards and that he may have something wrong with his layrinx or oesophogus. We are seeing paediatgrician tomorrow for his silent reflux and doc said i need to talk to her as it needs looking into.

bit worried now, has anyone any experience of this and any idea what could be wrong?

tia

DD2 had a snotty bunged up nose and snored from day one. It turned out to be a reaction to cows milk protien. I went dairy free and within two weeks she was clear and breathing easily. (she had reflux and excema too, all of it cleared up when the dairy was removed from my diet)

ps it could still be laryngomalacia, but if they think he needs surgery and they're not experienced in doing it on newborns, they're right to refer him to a specialist hospital like GOSH. Or, it could be they want to rule out other issues. Hope they tell you more soon.

green,exactly what i first thought but my ds is now on goats milk (under paed) sorry not sure if you are talking to me or not

sorry daddynet, at least your in good hands and something is being done

mad

Is DS2 on goats milk now? Or do you mean DS1? I'm confused!!!

Goats milk protien is very different to cows milk, and less likely to cause problems, but still can. My DD2 (2½) can't tolerate goats milk yet, so apart from my milk she drinks rice milk (soya doesn't really agree with her and she doesn't like it!) I drink goats milk as I find cows milk can upset my stomach, but goats milk is fine, so it can different enough, but isn't always.

they both are on it. ds1 has delamere and ds2 has nanny goatformula. they were both tried nutramigen, neocate etc but they couldnt tolerate them, both were alot better when put on it

(whispers quietly; is breastmilk not an option?)

err no.

yesterday his wheezing was worse and he has just had huge fit as his snorting was annoying/hurting him. really dont know what to do with him

Elibean,

Sorry for the late reply, he will be going to GOSH tomorrow from Essex to London for 2 days.

We will be going up tomorrow and just waiting for the confirmation as they said if there are any emgreancies we will have to wait.

I have found that his stridor gets better when his head is back slightly - i asume this is because his airway is open more...

Can i ask what people did in terms of cots. moses baskets etc as we will need to look into beds with raised materesses.

Thanks

you can buy cot blocks or we use a wedge under the mattress at the head end for his reflux www.babyreflux.co.uk/products/Baby-Bed-Blocks.html#

www.olivers-baby-care.co.uk/Rest-Easy-Baby-Sleeping-Wedge/8pol640p.asp

I hope it goes ahead tomorrow, daddynet.

We put folded towels under the mattress in moses basket, but soon found the cot was easier to manage (more stable). We put books under the head end legs, and a flattish pillow under the top end of the mattress, and put her to sleep on her side with rolled up towel either side to stop her rolling.

Interesting, what you say about head back position...dd's was probably better with head tilted forward, but definitely better on her front or side than on her back. Have you tried putting him on his side, wiht you present for safety, just to see? Airways are usually more open with head back, but not usually with laryngomalacia, because of the positioning of the 'floppy' folds of inner tissues. Or so I seem to remember

Will be thinking of you, hope the transfer goes smoothly and you have help with your other two!

How's ds today, Mad4?

not grear, saw HV today andshe suggested onset of asthma?! it really does affect him. the snoring/snorting wakes him up and annoys him.really fed up

Yes, have had loads of that with dd, but in her case it started later and was mostly down to adenoids and tonsils, I think....though the larynx didn't help.

I did wonder about asthma, with the wheeze...does anyone else have it, in your family?

yes asthma is in family but the snotty/snuffly ness isnt asthma sighns surely?

listening more to it it is more of a squeak/rasp noise hard to explain and he doesnt always do it. breathing sounds normal on his tummy but when he wakes up from tummy he is more snuffly, really wierd

Squeaky noise is what dd did/does. Is he worse on his back? Squeak-wise? And is the squeak when he breathes in, or out?

Because if its when he breathes in, thats quite possibly why the GP said 'larynx'. Its exactly what dd did.

Asthma wheeze sounds are on breathing out, not in, so....

no he does it mainly main breathing out...

saw gp today and she was no help again.it really does cause him probs but they dont think its anything to wotrry about

Ah...probably not laryngomalacia, then. Glad its not worrying, in a way, but sounds soo frustrating - I bet they're waiting to see if he grows out of it or not? They do that a lot, because then it gets clearer if there's an ongoing problem and if so, what the solution is, but - and its a big but - thats no help for the frazzled parent trying to live with an undiagnosed situation.

I'm sorry, Mad4, hope it gets clearer/better v v soon.

daddynet, any news?

Elibean / Mad4,

Sorry for the delay we have been in GOSH for the last 2 days, well here we are, loads of questions now.

Our son has Lanyagomalica (getting used to saying that now), the surgen cut 2 small peicies away from his flappy lanyx (cant remember what they called it, but the bit that closes when you breath in). This was done today and he has been very quite and not much stridor noice now...

We have started to bottle feed him as well as he has never been manually feed before. He also has a blocked nose and they have some drops for his nose.

They also mentioned reflux and he is taking ranitidine.

Can you let me know how you live / lived with this, any pointers etc... Not sure the difference between air purfifiers and humididters...

He will be booked in for a check upin 6 weeks as well.

thanks everyone for their help and support on this, it has been a rollercoster of a journey so far..

Keith

so glad you are getting it sorted. with reflux (both my ds have/had it) they say it often goes hand in hand with floppy layrinx/

Anyway these are the things that i found help: keep him upright for half hour after feed (either on you or in bouncy chair etc. reflux babies tend to be better feeding little and often. prop up his bed (depending on what hes in) moses basket either roll towel up under head of matress or button head end of basket on a cushion, with a cot you can use cot blocks or a wedge to go under head end but we found an amby bed (google it) was fantasic although ds2 is in a cot as because of these breathing problems he seems to have he is better in cot.

Also watch the car seat. we found wih ds1 it was completely the wrong angle and made him set hunched over his tummy which would make him scream. Go VERY slowly over speed bumps. Dont joggle him up and down alot esp after feed and also try not to pat his back as that will bounce the acid around and poss hurt him. Dummy helped soothe the pain. Also try not to lay flat at all unless its when a feed is due. when you change him (after/during a feed) lay him with his head on a cushion and try not to lift his legs up too high. erm....trying to think of other things...

oh and a purifier take out pollutants and germs etc out of the air and a humidifier literally puts water/vapour back into the air and makes breathing better. We bought one from argos which was about £200 but great it is a purifier AND humidifier so fab when there are cold germs around and also mould spores

I haven't read all of this, but just in case it hasn't been mentioned, have you considered dairy intolerance? My dd was congested for the first 3 months of her life - I assumed it was because she was a winter baby. She wheezed in her sleep and occasionally woke me up with a huge gasp - I assume she's stopped breathing for a bit . We worked out she had reflux, I gave up dairy and it all stopped.

hi, are you talking to me or daddynet? my ds cant have dairy or soya and is on goats formuka (under paed)

Hi Keith, so relieved to hear you have a clear diagnosis, and the surgery is done already...in some ways, it would have been easier for us if dd's had been treated surgically so early on. She probably didn't need it as much as your ds, but two years down the line whilst removing tonsils etc they did exactly the same thing - cut away two tiny bands of cartilage either side of her trachea (windpipe). Its great that the stridor is less already!

I would second Mad4's advice re investing in a humidifier/purifier - we mostly use the humidifier bit, as dd doesn't really have allergies. It helps anyway when they have croup, or a cold, or stuffy nose - so worth having, and doubly so with laryngomalacia. I do'nt know how much the surgery makes a difference, but maybe you won't have to live with very much at all....? Just be a bit more vigilant with infections, ie go to GP sooner and tell them about the condition and the surgery; try putting him down on his side rather than on his back (wedged); raise head end of cot for a while after surgery, longer if needs be for the reflux. If the reflux meds are not sufficient (dd had domperidone as well, some LOs need stronger meds) ask for them to be changed - he may be unsettled after feeds till he's about 3 months old anyway, even with meds, but lots of screaming/arching or throwing up will let you know if the reflux is bad.

When weaning, we found dd managed best with finger foods, so she could be in control - we had a shaky start, but she got it very fast and did well. Other LOs prefer softer foods to start with, but dd didn't - she liked 'edges' from the beginning.

Later on, if you find he's struggling with sleep and/or eating, ask the ENT team to check his tonsils....we were ocnfused by the largyno for a while and didn't realize dd's worsening sleep apnoea (when they gasp and can't breathe during sleep) was largley down to tonsils meeting in the middle!

And don't worry about squeaky noises, if they don't seem to be bothering your ds - its normal, and he'll grow out of it

Anything you want to ask as you go along, do - and if you ever want to CAT me, feel free.