Albuterol question!

[galesville1980]

Originally Posted by luvsviola We do nebulizer treatments. Our pulminologist said if you need to do them more than once an hour to call, and no more than 5 in a 24 hour period, and if you need that much, you need to call the after hours doc.

This is what ours told us when we picked our neb up today

[MandaMommy2]

Originally Posted by galesville1980 Have u ever tried the inhauler? If so did it not work for u? Is a nebulizer really going to make a difference if the inhauler does not work at all?

We use an inhaler for our son for emergencies only like when he's having trouble breathing at soccer. When he's sick the inhaler doesn't cut it and we use a nebulizer multiple times per day. You should never give more than the two puffs unless instructed by a doctor because there could be serious consequences. It seems like it would be best to contact your pediatrician ASAP. My son has severe asthma and it has taken years of working with his doctors and specialists and changing his medications until we found a solution that works. My son also takes a daily maintenance inhaler called Flovent which is a steroid. He isn't able to tolerate albuterol because it raises his heart rate too much so he uses Xopenex. Both these medications are available in inhaler and nebulizer formulations and we have both on hand to use depending on how he's doing. There are other options so I urge you to talk to someone quickly. Inhaler like any other medication can cause overdose symptoms. If your child is really struggling to breath you may need to take her into the ED for a breathing treatment and a chest x-ray. Good luck. I hope she's feeling better soon.

[Mac & Cheeses mom]

Originally Posted by BellaPepper I an asthmatic and have learned a lot lately due to a recent bad spell of it that lasted 6 months. Here's some bullet points: Nebulizer treatment are more effective then a rescue. Use your neb over rescue whenever possible Asthma can be triggered by allergies. Give claritan a try, it has helped my asthma symptoms significantly, I take it every day. You can take Benadryl even when taking claritan daily. You can give Benadryl a try if she isn't responding to the neb. The coughing may be from excess mucus vs. bronchial construction. You can purchase your own pulse ox at the pharmacy. If you have tried all of these and she is still struggling do not be afraid to take her to the ER. Breathing is number 1 in CPR and is always taken seriously. I am not a doctor, this is all info given to me by my doctor and pharmacist.

All this is true. We found during cold and allergy season with or DD1 was worse. She would cough and cough for house try a peppermint tea or warm water with a peppermint candy or even just have her suck on a peppermint candy cane it works.

[MandaMommy2]

I was just reading through some of the other responses after i posted. I remembered that when my son was younger and his asthma was uncontrolled he had to take oral prednisone when he was very sick with a respiratory infection. This is a steroid my little guy and would be bounce off the walls hyper, but it's the only thing that would finally help him. If I were you I would request a referral to asthma and allergy specialist and try to get your hands on a neb. Your insurance might cover it or perhaps you doctor has an old one the could lend or give you. I know we give our older nebs to the doctor to give to people who need them.

[Resellmybelle]

Have you tried over the counter mucinex? I use the generic ones from Walgreens and it stops my cough in its tracks. I am a lifelong asthmatic who tries to limit rx meds as much as possible due to nasty side effects. The Walgreens brand is much cheaper than name brand. I use two types. Please try these and see if it helps break up the mucus and lessen coughing. My dd has a bad cold right now and is using it to control her cough, working very well.

Walgreens over the counter meds that work great for controlling cough:
Mucus Relief DM
Mucus Relief Plus

Only side effects we get is we have to drink tore water because it dries us out a bit.

Good luck!

[galesville1980]

Update post #1

[MandaMommy2]

Originally Posted by galesville1980 Update 12/25 The neb is working great!! We have a follow up specialist app tomorrow at 2, to discuss what outlr next steps are. Thanks for ur help!

I'm glad you were able to get a neb. Hope your DD will be feeling better soon. I'm sure the specialist will have some ideas to keep your DD symptoms under control.

[luvsviola]

Good luck! We had to do a round of oral Prednisone when DS first was diagnosed to get things calmed down, but since then, pulmicort, flonase, and occasional albuterol work for us. The first week, it was pred plus albuterol every 6 hours around the clock to calm things down though.

Our pulminologist is very aggressive in treatment. His philosophy is that inflammation=lung damage you can't reverse, and with a kiddo who has a lot of years left, we do anything and everything to avoid coughing.

[corinne76]

Glad to hear her cough is improving!

[galesville1980]

Update post #1...saw dr today