Hi all,
We have a 2.75 year 'old' toddler. Towards the end of last year and at the beginning of this year he must have had about 5 chest infections. In each case, the chest infections followed after a prolonged cold. This was happening every 6 weeks like clock work. The summer months went fine. No problems at all. Then last Friday he had difficulty breathing at night (blocked nose) and I was none too happy about facing yet another chest infection. True to form, coughing and high temperature developed over Sunday/last night. My wife took him to the doctor this morning and I've yet to hear the diagnosis. I presume it's another chest infection.

On his last chest infection before the summer, the doctor had guessed asthma and prescribed Flixotide along with an inhaler device. However, it being the summer, there was no need to administer the Flixotide.

My question to you seasoned sufferers is, what can I do to reduce the chance of a chest infection developing. I'm not too sure which comes first - the infection or the cold-like symptoms. Personally, I had put it down to the amount of time he is spending in the house. He is indoors more during the colder months and maybe he has an allergy to house dust or something. I think asthma may be part of it but I wouldn't be so sure. I typically associate asthma as being heightened with exercise. We have a 12 year old and that is the case with him. We thought for a while that it might be allergy to dairy produce but we didn't change his diet at all during the summer. If anything he had more ice cream than usual. Our 12 year did have a dairy allergy and that prompted us to think that. Another theory I have is a depleted immune system (which is probably in some way related to allergy).

I guess I'm just hoping that someone out there might be able to associate with this sort of problem. We are bringing him to a pediatrician in the hope that something concrete can be established.

Thanks

There is a product called Singulair that I think can be given to someone as young as 2, look it up.

It has been a great help to me - I tried ClairinD, Zyertec and Allegra and still had bad attacks, especially in my allergy seasons. Singulair has helped greatly.

I am an Advair, Singulair and Albuterol and have good control, no attacks for almost two years. No bronchitis either, the first time in about 20 years that I haven't had bronchitis at least once or twice a year.

Singulair's awesome in that it CAN be given to kids.

It's a pill, and for younger kids, it's a chewable cherry-flavoured little guy.

my daughter( now 8) was diagnosed with asthma when she was 3. She was having problems all the time, didn't matter what the season was.Seemed liked she had a cold most of the time. And it also seemed like her chest was always full. Wheezed a lot also. I took her to an allergist(pediatrician recommended) and we found out that she had allergies..dogs, cats, seasonal(fall pollen) dust mites.....and asthma. Singulair wasn't around at the time so she would have to take her albuterol inhaler morning and night to prevent asthma attack. But, they had also put her on Flovent and zyrtec at the time, and a nasal spray. We had only minor problems with her asthma. When she was 4 maybe 5 she needed to use her inhaler alot more often and around that time, singulair came out. Halleluya!!
What a major change in her life that was. Singulair has been a major, major breakthrough for us. She uses her albuterol inhaler maybe 4 times a year.It does sound like your child does have asthma, and probably also allergies. Dust mites are a big one. Dogs, cats...zyrtec works great for both indoor and outdoor allergies. My daughter get a cold every year..some times it's bad, sometimes it's just a cold. Right now it's a bad one...has to miss soccer because she's too wheezy. Don't know if this has helped or not.

I think that indoor vs. outdoor allergies thing is an absolutely HILARIOUS marketing ploy since it plays on the gullible.

Hilarious or cruel, depending.

I mean, honestly people, do you think your body makes one kind of histamine for inside the house, and another kind of histamine for the outside of the house? Um. No?