Baby in intensive care, Bronchillitis and possible MRSA

[Emmalou]

My 3 week old baby is in intensive care with
Bronchillitis. We've all had a nasty cold/cough
virus and she picked it up, went straight to her
chest. She's up and down with her progress and I am concerned about her recovery. The doctors say she's not in any immediate danger but that isn't very reassuring. She's breathing with the help of a ventillator. Anyone else experienced this and can offer some words of comfort ? She's also picked up MRSA whilst in hospital which might be hampering her progress. Anyone know anything about it ?

hi emmalou, my ds had bronchiolitis at 4m. he did not need to be hospitalised. the paediatrician we saw at the time said it is extremely common and that babies do sometimes end up in hospital with it. fwiw, ds made a complete recovery. if the doctors say she is not in immediate danger, please take as much comfort as you can from that.

are the doctors at the hospital taking sufficient time to address your concerns and explain things properly to you? if you feel you have questions that are not being addressed, it is worth being politely firm with them. it can be difficult talking to medical professionals - they obviously know so much more than we do.

i found this mnemonic in an nct book - it is designed to help women make sense of procedures in hospital during labour but may also be useful in structuring your conversations with the medical staff regarding your dd's condition and treatment.

BRAN

what are the Benefits of proposed treatment/procedure?
what are the Risks or proposed treatment/procedure?
what are the Alternatives?
what happens if we do Nothing?

hope the above is some help.

best of luck - this must be very worrying. babies are incredibly resilient though, so there's every reason to hope for the best.

Emmalou - I know how you feel, it's very distressing to watch your newborn very poorly. My son was 6 weeks old when he contracted Bronchillitis. He was in hospital for over a week, inside a small oxygen tent. I hope you've got family and friends around for the shoulder to cry on. I didn't so it's imperative you have this. I'm sorry I don't know what MRSA is but I'm sure there are others who do that can offer advice. Doctors also told me that he wasn't in imminent danger but you still worry like hell. I'm sure she will be fine, most babies with this make a quick recovery and as soon as she starts to keep feeds down again, this is the plus sign that you'll need. I was told the only drawback, is that they might suffer from asthma afterwards.
I hope this helps a little. I hope little one make a speedy recovery.

Emma lou - I too have experience of this. My ds (now2) has had bronchiolitis (RSV) 6 times and pneumonia 3 times. Each time he has been hospitalised - sometimes with oxygen, and twice with a need for ventilation.

I really feel for you all it is totally horrible for the parents, but to echo what others have said, it is very common. Someone said that they sometimes can be more prone to asthma , and for us this is definitely the case.

The thing with little babes is that they can get very sick very quickly - but they can bounce back extremely fast as well !

My thoughts are with you , how is she doing now, as its some hours since you first posted? are you able to stay with her or are there no facilities?

Emmalou

I feel so sorry for what you and your baby are going through. Our dd picked up RSV and Bronchiolitis at 3 months, and this was only picked up because she coughed so hard she was throwing every feed back. Fortunately our dr was very on the ball and we were able to nurse her through it at home but were told afterwards that she had 80 % chance of hospitalisation. It must be very distressing to see her so vulnerable but do take comfort that she is getting the best possible care. I don't think the doctors would hold back on you if there was real danger.

Again we were told it was an extremely common condition especially in under 1s and our dd made a full recovery in about 10 days. It did however make her more vulnerable to picking up other infections immediately afterwards (uti and ear infection) and this may have happened in your case too. However I'm not familiar with MRSA.

HTH and do hope your dd improves soon,

LizS

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Emmalou ... hang in there ... my DS was in hospital at 4 weeks with pyloric stenosis for 5 days and then again at 6 weeks for a week with a meningitis scare ... it was the scariest time of my entire life BUT I felt that he had such good care that I will always be grateful to the NHS ...

How is she doing today?

Thinking of you ... GX

Emmalou,

So sorry about your baby. I hope she starts feeling better soon. I know its got to be so hard since she is so tiny. I know a few parents who had the same thing happen to there babies. They all ended up in the hospital and all came home fine. Wish you the best.

Emmalou

My sympathies - my ds went into intensive care at 7 days old with severe jaundice and dehydration and it left me absolutely shattered - couldn't stop crying.

But things I did learn 1) they are incredibly resilient - once they start to recover, they will bounce back, 2)pediatricians are usually very honest, so I'd be reassured by your doctors comments, but if you have any fears ask for more details - keep going with the detail until you don't understand, then go for the explanation of that, too. 3) Practical point - try to get some sleep while she's in, because once she is recovered you're going to need it!

Good luck and I hope things go smoothly for you.

hope she is on the mend - thinking of you

Just to let you know we are thinking of you all. My dh is a doc and says the MRSA can hamper progress if it is in the lungs but will make no difference if it is on the skin. It is a nasty bug and needs nasty antibiotics to clear it up, but it is possible to cure.
Take good care of yourself, try to rest and get some sleep. Our love to you and your family!

How are things Emmalou? Thinking of you and your family.