Title:  Wheezing Baby (ER)
Producer: Emily Halevy
Feed: CWKN #381, April 16, 2008
Time: 1:28
SUGGESTED LEAD: MANY CHILDHOOD ILLNESSES SHARE AT LEAST ONE COMMON SYMPTOM: WHEEZING… OR DIFFICULTY BREATHING.  THE CAUSE COULD BE A COLD OR THE FLU; IT COULD ALSO BE ASTHMA, WHOOPING COUGH, OR A VIRAL INFECTION IN THE LUNGS.  WHEN DO YOU NEED TO TAKE IT SERIOUSLY? ONE ANSWER IS … WHEN YOUR CHILD IS TURNING BLUE. CONNECT WITH KIDS HAS THAT STORY FROM THE EMERGENCY ROOM.
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NARR: TWO-MONTH-OLD WESLEY PARROTT IS HAVING TROUBLE BREATHING … A FEW HOURS AGO HE WAS TURNING BLUE. (:05)

NAT SOUND: WHEEZING (:07)

NARR:  THE DOCTOR SUSPECTS A VIRAL INFECTION THAT 99 PERCENT OF ALL OF US GET DURING CHILDHOOD CALLED R-S-V. (:07)

SUPER: Michael Mallory, M.D., Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (:16)
“Which stands for respiratory syncytial virus, which, according to many studies and in reality, is responsible for the majority of what’s called bronchiolitis.”

NARR:  HE SAYS LUNGS ARE SOMETHING LIKE A TREE. AN INFECTION OF THE TRUNK AND THE LARGE BRANCHES … THE MAIN AIRWAYS …  THAT’S BRONCHITIS.

AN INFECTION OF ALL THE TWIGS AT THE END OF THE BRANCHES … THAT’S BRONCHIOLITIS.

AND IT CAN BE SERIOUS. (:14)

SOT: Michael Mallory, M.D., Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (:39)
“If a child gets so sick that they need oxygen, that they’re working so hard that I’m scared they’re going to lead themselves to respiratory failure or tucker out or if they’re working so hard to breathe that they can’t maintain their hydration and they need to stay in the hospital and certainly Weslee qualified for admission.”

NATS: doctor to mom (:54)
“And yeah, I’m just concerned with the way that he’s breathing right now, I’m a little reluctant to send you home.”  Mom- “That’s fine.”

NARR: IN FACT CHILD IS ADMITTED… THE PROBLEM NOW IS TREATMENT. (:04)
 
SOT: Michael Mallory, M.D., Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (1:04)
“The very frustrating thing about it is … nothing really seems to work.”

NARR:  HE SAYS ASTHMA MEDICINE MAY HELP …  SOMETIMES EPINEPHRINE PROVIDES TEMPORARY RELIEF… BUT MOSTLY YOU JUST TREAT THE SYMPTOMS. (:08)

SOT: Michael Mallory, M.D., Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (1:15)
“You know, sucking the nose out, giving oxygen, supporting the respiratory effort as much as we’re able to.”

NARR: AND THEN … IN TIME … THE BOY’S BODY WILL KILL THE VIRUS. (:04)

I’M COLLIN SIEDOR FOR CONNECT WITH KIDS. (:03)

SUGGESTED TAG:   FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS AND OTHER STORIES LOG ONTO WWW.CONNECTWITHKIDS.COM.