Hi everyone,
Just an update from my post yesterday. We took Nick to the doctor. They ran tests and Nick does have the H1N1/swine flu. He is pretty sick and taking Tamiflu. The doctor said as he is higher risk of this, we need to watch his lungs/breathing and take him to the ER if any signs of difficulty as we don't want him to end up with pneumonia.
Greg, Isabella, and I made it to a clinic last night (we took turns while one of stayed with Nick) near-by and got the H1N1 vaccine (mist) but I guess it was too late for Nick:)
Nick got 2 hours of sleep last night and is feeling pretty miserable at this point. Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers. We really appreciate it!:)
Blessings:)
Amy
Is cerebral palsy a risk factor for H1N1/swine flu? If so, how does CP (a brain injury) make a person more susceptible to swine flu?
ReplyDeleteUpdate November 16th-Nick's on his 5th day of swine flu. While he's doing much better in some ways (no more vomiting and he is eating and drinking), he is still REALLY sick, cough, congestion (major), fever off and on, really lethargic and "out of it", weak. Finished his Tamiflu tonight so I will call doctor tomorrow if he's still this sick. I guess secondary bacterial infections (sinus infections, pnumonia, etc.) are the real problems with this flu. We're keeping an eye on it. Greg, Isabella, and I are all sick now but I don't think we have the swine flu. More like bad colds, sinus stuff. Thanks everyone for your prayers and concern! Keep healthy!
ReplyDeleteAmy
David,
ReplyDeleteI don't know that cerebral palsy itself makes a person more susceptible. I'm not a doctor. For Nick, based on what his doctors have told us, it's the medical issues related to the CP, that vary with each individual, that can make someone at higher risk to get sick, etc. For Nick, he had a full exhanged transfusion of his blood as an infant and he has other medical issues. He also seems to have less stamina, etc. due to how hard he has to work physically (his muscles) to do every-day things. So, his immune system is not a strong (we've been told) and therefore, with all of these factors, he is considered in the "high risk" category for vaccinations, etc. So, we always can get his vaccincations, etc. quickly. Then, his doctor also told us that we all should keep up on our immunizations, etc. as we are around Nick and taking care of him. Nick has always gotten sick REALLY easily. We always joked (but it's not really funny) that he can catch anything within a 50 mile radius. We can't stop him from getting sick but we take any precautions we can, like frequent hand-washing, keeping up on immunizations, taking vitamins, wearing masks if we're sick and he's not, etc.
I hope that answers your question. I want to say again, I am not a medical expert. This is just what we've been told by Nick's doctors and what has been our experience over the years. I think it varies for everyone and is based on medical issues, not the brain injury itself.