Cruz visited the ACH Pulmanologist!

Finally, our appointment was yesterday. As you know, my baby Cruz has had some lung issues since birth. We have had MANY trips to the pediatritian, who kept telling us he had a virus he couldn't get over. I never bought that. Motherly instinct kept telling me there was something else going on. So after lots of $$ on medications that did not help, she finally referred us to a pulmanologist with Arkansas Childrens' Hospital.

Our appointment was yesterday at 10am. They first took xrays on his chest. I wish I had pictures of how they xray a 6 month old! He was sitting on a table that had holes for his legs to go through. Then, I had to hold his arms up while they incapsulated him in a clear tube with a cut out for his face. He looked so funny in that thing! Can't believe he didn't cry!!

Next, we met with a nurse who asked a TON of questions about his medical history. When I told her that I cannot remember him every being well and always having a rattling chest, she immediatly said she suspected it had something to do with him not swallowing well and fluid getting into his lungs. Interesting! She was also concerned with his weight. He is in the "less than 3%" for wieght. She said this was somewhat alarming and decided I also needed to meet with a nutritionist while we were there.

Then Dr. Menendez came in to meet with us and she was wonderful! She agreed with everything the nurse had already suggested. They decided to put Cruz on Simply Thick, which is an additive to his bottle to make it more thick and easier to swallow. She said when he is drinking a bottle it is like a constant drip into his lungs, which then irritates them. She said the xrays showed his lungs where swollen (bronchitis) and this is because of the excess fluid.

She also said she is concerned and will keep an eye on him for possible asthma in the future. He also has really dry skin, which is a sign of that. And, with his weight issue, she decided to also have him tested for cystic fibrosis. Very scary, but I really feel confident this is not what his problem is. But a big sign of CF is not gaining weight and constant lung problems. We will be going to Arkansas Children's Hospital this Friday at 1pm to have a sweat test run. Please pray for Cruz and that his test comes back negative.

We then met with a pediatric respratory therapist who put him on 3 different inhalers. One he will take twice a day (Flovent). And 2 that he will take if he seems to be getting worse.

The nutritionist decided we needed to increase his calories, so we are making bottles with more scoops of formula than normal (with the thickener too!). So far Cruz is taking them okay. She wants him to gain an ounce a day and go back in 2 weeks for a weight check.

Whew, that was a lot of information! I feel so good to finally have some answers! Everyone at ACH was so wonderful to work with. I can't tell you how nice they were. I didn't ever feel like anyone was rushing on to the next patient. What a wonderful experience. And as no suprise, Cruz smiled throughout the entire appointment. He is so happy to be going through so much. What a sweet baby. It brings tears to my eyes to think about how bad he feels everyday and how he just stays so pleasant. I can't imagine what he'll think about life when he feels 100%!