An eventful weekend.
There were a couple of things I wanted to do this weekend: hit REI for some shopping, watch the Soapbox Derby in Dolores Park, visit our friends Cathy and Russell and their daughter Josie in San Mateo.
We didn't do any of those things. Instead, we got to check out Long Hospital's pediatric ward.
Thursday evening, Owen came down with a case of croup. I only knew what it was because one of his day care classmates just had it. The only thing I knew about croup before now was that it figured in Anne of Green Gables (although I don't precisely remember how). It is a scary little viral infection that mostly targets kids under six. The soft tissues in the throat get inflamed and swollen, causing a cough that sounds like a seal barking and, sometimes, difficulty breathing as the airway gets narrower and narrower. The basic home treatment is Tylenol for the fever and steam from the bathroom shower for the breathing. Around 8 p.m. Friday night, Owen had a major coughing fit with very labored breathing that the steam therapy didn't help, so we headed for the ER.
Ever wonder what you have to do to go to the emergency room and be treated like you really have an emergency? "My baby is having trouble breathing" will do the trick.
In the ER, Owen got two rounds of oxygen + epinephrin for immediate relief and a dose of steroids to bring down the swelling. He was admitted to the hospital around 11:30 at night, and I spent the night with him while Eric went home. (Silver lining - because croup is very contagious, we had a private room.) He had one more "desaturation event" (that is, oxygen level falling) around 4:30 a.m., but was okay after that. Saturday was uneventful, just the three of us sitting in the hospital room waiting for the doctors to discharge him. We got home around 4:30 in the afternoon and just crashed.
Owen slept surprisingly well last night, and this morning was mostly back to himself. He is still coughing but shows no signs of fever or breathlessness. We are thankful that it was not more serious and that he seems to be recovering quickly.
We didn't do any of those things. Instead, we got to check out Long Hospital's pediatric ward.
Thursday evening, Owen came down with a case of croup. I only knew what it was because one of his day care classmates just had it. The only thing I knew about croup before now was that it figured in Anne of Green Gables (although I don't precisely remember how). It is a scary little viral infection that mostly targets kids under six. The soft tissues in the throat get inflamed and swollen, causing a cough that sounds like a seal barking and, sometimes, difficulty breathing as the airway gets narrower and narrower. The basic home treatment is Tylenol for the fever and steam from the bathroom shower for the breathing. Around 8 p.m. Friday night, Owen had a major coughing fit with very labored breathing that the steam therapy didn't help, so we headed for the ER.
Ever wonder what you have to do to go to the emergency room and be treated like you really have an emergency? "My baby is having trouble breathing" will do the trick.
In the ER, Owen got two rounds of oxygen + epinephrin for immediate relief and a dose of steroids to bring down the swelling. He was admitted to the hospital around 11:30 at night, and I spent the night with him while Eric went home. (Silver lining - because croup is very contagious, we had a private room.) He had one more "desaturation event" (that is, oxygen level falling) around 4:30 a.m., but was okay after that. Saturday was uneventful, just the three of us sitting in the hospital room waiting for the doctors to discharge him. We got home around 4:30 in the afternoon and just crashed.
Owen slept surprisingly well last night, and this morning was mostly back to himself. He is still coughing but shows no signs of fever or breathlessness. We are thankful that it was not more serious and that he seems to be recovering quickly.
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