Now that the holidays are over...

Now that the holidays are over I wanted to post an update on Annalisa's health.

Annalisa has been suffering from "Upper Respiratory Distress" since Gotcha Day. One of the first things that I remember from Gotcha Day is how bad her chest was rattling. It went away after a few days and I didn't think much about it until a few days before we left China. I figured that the plane trip from Nanchang to Guangzhou didn't help the cold she was getting over so I just gave her some Robutissin.

The long trip home went OK. Annalisa did remarkably well on the long flight not counting the last hour on our way to Jacksonville when she screamed the whole time until we got off the plane.

Her congestion got progressively worse and we saw our pediatrician a few days after we came home. He didn't think it was an infection (it didn't sound like one he said) but more like Upper Respiratory Distress that could be caused from allergies or asthma.

We started her on two nebulizer treatments per day. At her next doctor's visit she was doing worse so we increased the nebulizers to three/four per day. Another week went by without her getting better so we added Singular to the nebulizer treatments. Finally, after almost one month her chest started to sound better. We were advised to continue on the nebulizers (one per day) and the Singular.

Our pediatrician thought she may be suffering from seasonal allergies. One unfortunate thing about children of Annalisa's age is that allergies or asthma cannot be diagnosed quickly. They need to be kept under observation for 6 to 12 months before they can make a diagnosis.

Throughout this time Annalisa gained over 1 pound and her appetite was good. I was still concerned about her loose (and extremely stinky) stools and asked her to be tested for Giardia but the doctor didn't think there was anything to worry about since she was gaining weight.

Last week as I was changing her wet diaper before bed time I saw what looked like a noodle sticking out of her bottom. At first I thought that something had fallen in her diaper but we hadn't had noodles that day. Then, it started to wiggle. Let me tell you, by now I am freaking out. I pulled the "noodle" all the way out and screamed for John to get in the room. This thing looked like a spaghetti, about 6 inches long with tapered ends.

We sealed the worm in a zip lock bag and called the doctor. We tested the worm and did a stool sample the next day. It turned out to be a Round Worm. We put Annalisa on Vermox for three days in a row and will need test her again in a few weeks to make sure we got rid of everything.

After doing some research I learned that worms in children adopted from overseas are not uncommon. They get them from unsanitary conditions or food. The eggs are first ingested, then they travel from their stomachs to their bronchial branches where they hatch (this can cause breathing problems). From their lungs the larvae work their way back in their intestines and eventually work their way out of the body. Some of the symptoms are: trouble sleeping, restless during wake hours, chest congestion and breathing problems. Guess what? Annalisa has had all of the above.

The worm medication is still working through her body. She has many poopy diapers every day and a lot of gas which must give her tummy aches. I don't know yet how the medication will affect her breathing problems. I am really hoping that it resolves in the next few weeks.

Despite her health problems Annalisa is doing very, very well. She has bonded with John and I. She is very social and likes people but doesn't want to be too far away from mommy and daddy. She has now 14 teeth (she had 8 on Gotcha Day). She crawls and cruises around the house and has taken her first steps a few days ago although she has refused to do it again after that. She loves our dog and she is starting to grasp the concept of toys. She laughs and smiles a lot and loves her swing set on our back yard.

I hope this information will be helpful to some families that have just returned from China. Overall it's not a big health concern but it sure surprised/scared me at first.