That sounds like what I was told as well, so good to get confirmation of definition. my ds doesn't have any other symptoms of being ill at all, no cough/fever/crankiness or what you would expect if he had something like bronchiolitis, which is prolly why they said he sounded like a happy wheezer.
I hope it's just as simple as it sounds and doesn't lead to other things..i guess that may be why i'm worrying! it just sounds too simple! especially when "Wheezing" is involved!
good point tho, will ask about physical symptoms to look out for....
My DS was called a 'happy wheezer' - lol i thought that my MCHN made up the name- never heard of anyone elses baby being a happy wheezer until now
he made a wheeze sound all the time but it did not bother him
He is now 6 years old
DS was born 10 weeks early and had RDS- and HMD- he also has chronic lung disease from being prem- and that is why he was a wheezer. At age 3 years he was dx with asthma as well- and is now on a preventer puffer that stops the wheeze and keeps the asthma under control.
He use to get pnumonia heaps when he was younger- however this stopped after we had the pnumonococial vaccination- it made a HUGE difference!
His O2 levels at the best of times are not great- but nothing stops him- he just takes his puffer when he needs it- but the preventer means that this is not often. Just got to watch him with the cold air!
hope this helps and if you want to know anything else - just let me know
The entire phrase is "fat, happy wheezer" and it's one of those cute medical terms that is falling out of fashion. It refers to a child that has an ongoing mild bronchospasm (narrowing of the airways) during infancy, but has no other symptoms or ill effects as a result. It is similar, and sometimes used to refer to, post-infection airway hypersensitivity, which is where a cough or wheeze persists for weeks or months after an infection, even though the other symptoms (fevers, or difficulty feeding or breathing) have gone. If you compare it to the alternative, which is an acutely unwell child, it's actually a good thing You are right, though, in that he may be prone to asthma later in life, and some "happy wheezers" do get sicker, quicker, when they get upper respiratory tract infections.
I think I've just got to do some research on asthma as I don't know much about it- which is where the fear is coming from. Schmickers thanks for helping me to understand it more clearly, it's interesting that the doc I saw the other day said he'd never heard of a fat happy wheezer, and said there's nothing he could hear in the lungs.
Sorta came out with the feeling "oh god he thinks I have Munchausen syndrome" as he just stared at me when I stopped speaking about ds's occasional wheeze
again thank you all so much- if it wasn't for you I would be a nervous wreck by now!
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You are right, though, in that he may be prone to asthma later in life, and some "happy wheezers" do get sicker, quicker, when they get upper respiratory tract infections.
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