Wednesday, September 9, 2009

We have croup!

I'm so thankful that Ralph has not been ill since last Thanksgiving, but I often wonder when it will happen again. Because, it will, right? Yep, we have croup in the house again! It's Ralph.

He's not been "right" for maybe a week. Not eating well (surprise, surprise!), cranky, and naughty. Now I know what's been bothering him. Should I take him to the doctor? 

It bothers me that I don't have an oximeter anymore. I can tell when his fever is serious or if he might be dehydrated by looking at his heart rate. I can tell if the breathing treatments are working by looking at his O2 levels. I feel blind and helpless without that little piece of equipment. Is that sad?

Ralph gets his hearing aids next Monday. I hope he's feeling better by then.


1 comments:

Anonymous said...

I always treated croup with a hot steamy bathroom visit.

However, my current pt gets a breathing treatment specially prescribed - but she has a medical profile.

I'm guessing you will have use a visual of his skin color. You could make it a little more standarized by choosing which body part you will judge (for color) and holding the same color (card or cloth) next to it for contrast. Oh, and always in the same light. Do you know how or get anything from listening to his chest?
Kiss the babies for me.
Barbara