The "P" Word

Gabe's been walking a fine line between healthy and sick for the last week and a half. I was going to write a post entitled "walking the line" but, as  I said, it's been a busy few weeks and today Gabe crossed that line anyways... he was diagnosed with pneumonia. :(

It all started last Friday. We were taking Gabe into his pediatrician's office for a round of vaccinations. All week it had been beautiful in Maryland - in the 80's and Gabe was outside for a walk each day. Then on Friday the weather turned and it was barely 60 degrees. It just so happened this day we had to venture out to get Gabe's shots. He struggled that day, as we rode in the car and unloaded to go into the doctor's office, to keep his sats up. He needed suctioning three times and bagging many other times. This is unusual for him when he is healthy; almost always a sure sign that he's getting sick.

Over the weekend he was sleepier than usual. I noticed it especially on Sunday when we had family over, including my two young nephews. The house was buzzing with excitement, noise, and the sound of kids playing. Normally Gabe would be awake and listening and most likely smiling at the sounds he'd hear. However on this day he slept right through it. I should have recognized it as another sign that he was feeling under the weather. I did, I suppose, but it was such a busy day I just figured he needed the rest.

On Monday Gabe went to school and I had to meet him and Lisa there to discuss ordering a new wheelchair/stroller for him. He's outgrown his current one. We got it in the spring of 2008, and in the course of the last two years he has gained 20 lbs! He is just about outgrown the width of the stroller, and while no one could have forseen him gaining 20 lbs. in 2 years, we need something that will give him room to grow. {Side note, the good news is that Gabe has been seeing his nutritionist every three months, and from Dec/09-March/10, he did not gain any weight!!! This is huge for him!} It looks like we are going to have to order a chair that does not fold up, which means we'll need to get a vehicle that has a lift, or adapt our current vehicle. 

On Tuesday Gabe had a very difficult time at school. Lisa essentially bagged him to and from school and there were numerous times during the school day that she almost called us to come get Gabe. When he got home, his temperature was very low, which is not surprising when he gets home from school, but this low of a temp almost always indicates a fever for Gabe (hypothermia instead of fevers). He also did not urinate as usual, in fact he did not really pee until 2:30 am Wednesday. Upon talking to his pulmonologist they did not recommend an antibiotic other than Tobramyacin (inhaled antibiotic through the nebulizer) and encouraged very frequent suctioning and chest percussion to loosen the secretions.

Wednesday - Friday were spent doing just that. I even thought by Friday that his secretions were starting to thin out and we had a great weekend with him. I spent Saturday with him as usual, just love those days of just mommy & Gabe. There were lots of smiles and cuddles. Sunday he enjoyed time with daddy in the morning and then family in the afternoon, downstairs. None of the nurses during this time brought anything to our attention or mentioned anything about his lung sounds or concerns about his lungs.

So this morning when Lisa arrived and listened to his lungs, imagine my surprise when she described how terrible his lungs sounded; almost as if they were filled with fluid. I felt so bad, and was filled with such sadness for my poor little guy. We took him to get a chest x-ray at a local radiology center, and dragged our middle daughter along. After the chest x-ray, which the radiologist described as having a right infiltrate (pnemonia), we loaded up and headed down to the pediatricians office, where Gabe's lungs were listened to, and thankfully, Gabe did not get the green light to the hospital. Instead he is on augmentin with the hopes of a turn-around within 72 hours.

Gabe's pediatrician did make me feel somewhat better when he stated that 20% of pnemonias are inaudible when listening to the lungs with a stethescope. It's only been 5 months since his last pneumonia...  I don't know why he is getting it more frequently. I am praying and hoping for a quick recovery. Please remember Gabe in your prayers. Thank you!!!!!

Look at my sweet baby boy, only about 4-5 months old. I swear he is still that same little baby, and surely 3 years haven't passed since this moment.