The Lungs on that Kid!: My Daughter

My daughter, Madelyn, has had respiratory problems since around 1 year old. This is a guide will provide more information about what is happening to her.

How it All Started

My daughter, Madelyn, was born five weeks early.  All my routine appointments leading up to her birth had been normal until the afternoon of February 2, 2009.  I had had a rough day at work teaching 8th grade in a Milwaukee non-public Parental Choice school.  It was a relief to go to my doctor appointment after school. When I arrived, the nurse checked my vitals including my blood pressure. After checking it on one machine she made a comment to me that she thought it might be malfunctioning, so she was going to get a mobile blood pressure machine to double check.  I didn't think anything of it until the doctor came in to talk with me.  He explained that my blood pressure was high and that he wanted to monitor me for a few hours before he would decide the next step.  A few hours went by and my blood pressure was still too high to send me home.  The doctor decided to induce. 

Twelve hours later on February 3, 2009 my daughter was born.  She was taken to the NICU where she was evaluated.  Upon evaluation she was pronounced a healthy little girl at 4 pounds 12 ounces.  Her lungs were fully developed and she would not need any additional oxygen during her stay in the NICU.  Becasue she was so small and premature she had to stay in the NICU for monitoring.  After 4 days we were allowed to bring her home.  During her first year she was healthy. It wasn't until her first birthday when she started developing problems.  Her breathing changed, she developed a fever, and was lethargic.  We took her to the emergency room.  In the ER she was diagnosed with RSV, pnuemonia, and bronchilitis.  After a nebulizer treatment and some antibiotics we were sent home.  She has since been in the ER one other time which led to an overnight hospital stay.  She was in respiratory distress.

The doctors are still not diagnosing any long term problems with her.  They won't say she has asthma. We just know that she is somehow more sceptible to upper respiratory infections for some reason.  The doctors won't even link her prematurity to her respiratory issues.  You can imagine as a parent how frustrating something like this could be.  This libguide is created to provide more information about the respiratory issues she has encountered in her two years of life.  Hopefully, it will provide others with some answers, as well.

Normal Vital Signs in Children

Normal Vital Signs in Childhood

Infant

Toddler

School-Age

Adolescent

Heart Rate

120-160

80-130

70-110

60-100

Respiratory Rate

25-40

20-35

15-25

10-20

Systolic blood pressure

60-90

70-100

90-110

95-130

Diastolic blood pressure

30-55

45-65

50-70

60-80

Subject Guide