prednisolone again

We have just finished the firsst 5 days prednisolone treatment for this winter. 7.5 ml/twice a day (I think the concentration is 15mg/5ml). A is still in a sensitized state. We got out of the car to walk in the forest he coughed, he run a bit - he coughed. This was yesterday. A warm and humid day. Today he actually woke up and I heard no coughing. No milk these days, we replaced it with mint tea. I am not sure about the inflamatory nature of milk...but we sacrifice for a while.

welcome in the year

we welcome the cold season with a first flare up. we have on board two days so far of xopenex and double dose of flovent. With axid and ibuprofen today since A was complaining of a sore throat ("all my life I had a sore throat"). The whether is chili and is windy and we all have a virus that we have circulated among us.

rainy these days

it's been rainy these days and hurricany and we needed Xopenex in the morning for the past two days. Rough voice, itchy throat, some coughing in the morning, maybe twice in the night.
PS: per dr's advice we switched strategy. i give first xopenex rather than increase flovent dose.

heat the culprit

a trip to the beach was well worth the effort. A felt much better. 

perhaps teh double dose of flovent helped too, but I feel the salty air was important. and the reduced temperatures.

something to consider and ask the doctor's advice!

add supplements or not, and which?

here is a list from http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/omega-3-000806.htm#asthma

 Alpha-Linolenic Acid (ALA) 
 Cysteine 
 Flaxseed Oil 
 Lactobacillus Acidophilus 
 Magnesium 
 Potassium 
 Quercetin 
 Selenium 
 Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid)

sources:

ALA: flaxseed oil

cysteine:ricotta, cottage cheese, yogurt, pork, sausage meat, chicken, turkey, duck, luncheon meat, wheat germ, granola, and oat flakes

Mg:tofu, legumes, whole grains, green leafy vegetables, wheat bran, Brazil nuts, soybean flour, almonds, cashews, blackstrap molasses, pumpkin and squash seeds, pine nuts, and black walnuts; peanuts, whole wheat flour, oat flour, beet greens, spinach, pistachio nuts, shredded wheat, bran cereals, oatmeal, bananas, and baked potatoes (with skin), chocolate, and cocoa powder. Many herbs, spices, and seaweeds supply magnesium, such as agar seaweed, coriander, dill weed, celery seed, sage, dried mustard, basil, cocoa powder, fennel seed, savory, cumin seed, tarragon, marjoram, poppy seed.

K:meats, fish, vegetables (especially potatoes), fruits (especially avocados, dried apricots, and bananas), citrus juices (such as orange juice), dairy products, and whole grains. Eat a varied diet with adequate intake of milk, meats, cereals, vegetables, and fruits.

Quercetin: Fruits and vegetables -- particularly citrus fruits, apples, onions, parsley, tea, and red wine -- are the primary dietary sources of quercetin. Olive oil, grapes, dark cherries, and dark berries, such as blueberries, blackberries, and bilberries are also high in flavonoids including quercetin.

Se: brewer's yeast and wheat germ, liver, butter, fish (mackeral, tuna, halibut, flounder, herring, smelts) and shellfish (oysters, scallops and lobster), garlic, whole grains, sunflower seeds, and Brazil nuts are all good sources of selenium.Selenium is destroyed when foods are refined or processed. Therefore, eating a variety of whole, unprocessed foods is the best way to obtain this nutrient. This means eating foods in their original state, not canned, frozen, or commercially prepared.

is this a bad asthma day?

trying to understand what causes a's cough: he does not really have a cold.
the weather indicates it is a "bad" asthma day but he's already been coughing for two days...in the mornings and evenings...and a little bit only (thanks God) during the day. He has no real problems sleeping, which is good.

here is the weather report from wunderground:

Heat advisory in effect from noon today to 8 PM EDT this evening...

Air Quality Forecast for Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill

	Air Quality:	AQ Index:	Pollutant:
Yesterday	Good		PM10
Yesterday	Good		OZONE
Current	Moderate		PM2.5
Current	Good		OZONE
Thursday	Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups		OZONE
Thursday	Moderate		PM2.5

coughing again

it might have started with a scare...when i pulled out a tooth.
or it may be a little bit of a cold in this hot and steamy weather, punctuated here an there by electrical storms.
but A is coughing again so we upped again the flovent to two puffs in the morning, two puffs in the evening...and added some albuterol to the mix.
and he's complaining of stomach pain so I gave him pepcid.

diet and astma ?

of this

Eat more

• Organically grown fruits and vegetables
• Cold water fish including cod, salmon, mackerel, herring and halibut
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Flax seeds
• Rosemary, ginger and turmeric

Eliminate milk and other dairy products which have been most commonly cited as increasing the severity of asthmatic symptoms.

link to yoga pozes for asthma

http://www.womenfitness.net/top10_yoga_asthma.htm

may 27 - still needing 2 puffs flovent, no albuterol

no albuterol
hopefully will get down to one puff of flovent sometime soon. but my first attempt was followed by a couple of coughs so I went back to two puffs for now.
still using Singulair in the hope that it lowers the need for higher doses of flovent...

may 16?

we have started again 2 puffs of flovent and two-4 albuterol each morning and evening . A does not cough continously throughout the day but his morning cough may come back later in the day if he feels cold or I do not know what else. I am worried cause we are not out of this yet. maybe it just takes a whole week?
tool pity and did not use the nebulizer since he had a nose bleed in the morning.

29 april-6 may

Between 29 april - may we gave Andy two puffs of flovent (220ug?) each morning and each evening. We also supplemented with albuterol, two puffs. He needed albuterol during soccer games and it seemed to help. He was getting better but now he may have another bug - head ache and a little too much mucus. No cough so far so I am relatively happy.

a review from NY Times

A review on pediatric asthma from NY Times.

strep throat

on the 3 april diagnosed with strep
treated with amoxicilin 400mg/ml(?) 5 ml twice a day
now has a little wet cough, heard him acouple of times during the day, a couple of times during the night

since the third we upped the floven to two puffs twice a day
since the day before yesterday added some albuterol two puffs morning, evening and midday

skipped soccer being afraid it was little cold and A was tired

Friday light

On Friday we talked to dr. Voynow and she prescriped A a higher dose of corticosteroids (15 ml/day for 3 days, 15 mg/5ml). Then we will taper it down (10 ml/ 3 days), etc. A felt much better on Saturday. Per Dr. Clements suggestion I also gave him Pepcid. A was also complaining of tummy aches and he was throwing up one day out of two (because of caughing too much probably). we also do albuterol treatments.
Today Monday A went to school. Boy he missed it. He even made a necklace for his teacher and was ready to learn to knit...
We are grateful to Dr. Voynow.

patterns

A' s cough has peaks; one in the morning at around 11 and one in the evening at around 8. we do steam...albuterol...

ER visit

yesterday we had to go to the ER after A coughed continuously for 1 hour or so. we were admitted within 20 ' (to their praise) and spend the next 4 hours there. he got motrin and a breathing treatment. his blood oxygenation level went up from 92 to 95 and 97. we will have to taper off the prednisolone. they think it is a viral infection but let us continue the zythromax treatment. A's mood is not the best...he's a little too nervous these days.

new treatment course started on 18 february

we are on a new corticosteroid treatment course...about the same dose as the previous one, same prelone (or orapred?) .we started on the 18 february. A also takes azythromycin. He's sort of tired after three bad nights. I am too...Let's hope this night will be better.

stormy night

stormy night outside, stormy night inside

I think A has caught a cold and now his asthma is acting up
we had a night with episodes of caughing, fever till 102 F and then in the morning he threw up

I find it hard to believe that it has to do with the sormy weather and the chane in temperature and pressure outside; but I cannot discard the later

if his asthma is an indicator of weather change it has got it right...the weather is cooling

will go to the doctor again ...hope that we can avoid a new series of corticosteroids ; but I do not understand the fever...

corticosteroids

treatment: 4 days of 1 tsp 1/2 prelone (15mg/ml) a day (but the first dose was double).
I am contemplating the use of Mg and vitamin B supplements.
more info (perhaps not medically endorsed)
http://www.bodyandfitness.com/Information/Health/asthma.htm

rather full blown

we have a rather full blown asthma issue.
a rather rough night. had to change a's shirt 6-7 times and give albuterol twice. but he did sleep.
coughing again in the morning and looks pale.
went to school. teacher reports he's doing well.
i think whether to page the dr or not. will see tonight.
the weather is getting cooler, which does not normally help.
we'll see if we can get over it without prednisolon. we use 220 mg flovent and albuterol delivered with the nebulizer now. twice a day. if needed atother times we give albuterol with the inhaler.
come spring!

little cough

a little barking cough in the morning , and then some in the evening.
stomach ache for the past two days, for which I gave antacid (Ca)
a little complaint "not feeling too good" this morning.


two puffs flovent, two puffs xopenex mornings and evenings.

with the help of good weather we shall overcome this too.

4 FEBRUARY

Not an asthma flare up but we had to up to 220 mg flovent because we fear that if we see lots of mucus in the nose...there might be a build up somewhere esle as well. some cough in the morning. so we took some xopenex as well.

I hope the warm weather will help A get better soon.

little A had an eczema "flare up" the other day too. a cold and windy day was all it took.

looking fwd to spring despite the groundhog's prognosis.