How scary is it to see your little baby breathing kind of "funny"? Very scary. What is wrong? Here are some ways to recognize if the baby's abnormal breathing are symptoms of asthma or some other breathing difficulty and what to do when you see them. Most doctors say that you cannot diagnose asthma so early in infants. But when your baby is having difficulty breathing, nothing else matters.
1. High respiratory rate. The normal breathing for a baby is about 30 to 40 times a minute. If their breathing is over 50, seek medical attention. If it is greater than 70, call your doctor on the way to the Emergency Room. It is so very important to take your baby's breathing seriously. A high respiratory rate can be signs of different things, but it is certainly not normal. Fever, asthma, colds, pneumonia are just a few things than can cause an abnormally high respiratory rate.
2. Tummy Breathing. Is your baby using all of their muscles to breathe? Is their little tummy moving hard trying to help get the air in? This is a big sign that they are having difficulty breathing. Take your baby to the doctor or the emergency room whenever you see this particular sign.
3. A sudden high pitched wheezing noise. I have personally experience this with my one year old. I am thankful for my Respiratory Therapy teaching and my profession. I kept telling everyone that this was not normal and that I think he inhaled something into his lung. Well, finally after four days, I got someone to listen (our pediatrician) she sent us to a specialist who pulled the little piece of something out of his lung. When the noise happens suddenly, it usually is some foreign body that has been sucked into the lungs and needs to be removed as quickly as possible. This is a partial airway obstruction. If the baby has a complete airway obstruction, it is deadly and you need to get it out. Put their head in a down position and pound on their back to dislodge it. If you are having difficulty getting it out call 911 and continue to work on getting it out. The baby is not breathing and this can result in death. Move quickly, but keep your head about you.
[If you know that something is different about your baby that is disturbing to you, keep telling your medical professionals until someone listens to you. No one knows what is normal for your baby more than you do. Trust your parental instincts]
4. Grunting Respirations or Nasal Flaring. This is the baby working at breathing. Working hard to keep the little airways open and to get in as much air as possible. Also a sign to get medical help immediately.
5. If the baby is less active than normal and listless. Get medical help immediately.
6. Blueish tint of the fingernail beds and the lips. Call 911. This is a signal that the baby's oxygen in their blood is low and they are unable to correct it. They need supplemental oxygen immediately.
7. Poor feeding. If the baby can't breathe well, they are not going to want to eat.
These are just a few of the signs and symptoms to look for when you feel that something is not right with your baby. When the breathing is concerned, it is so very important that you take immediate action. Breathing is life. When one is having difficulty breathing...well....the American Lung Association says it best:
"When you can't breathe, nothing else matters."
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