Update on Caroline!!

I swear my poor baby girl has had more doctor's appointments than I have had in my whole lifetime. As you all know, she has very bad reflux, something she will just have to outgrow. Well, since birth she has had a squeak noise that she makes when she inspires. It has continued to get worse, so we went to see an ENT doctor and he did diagnose her with laryngomalacia. Laryngomalacia is the most frequent cause of stridor or noisy breathing in infants. It occurs as a result of a floppy portion of the larynx (voice box) that has not yet developed the strength to provide rigid support of the airway. During inspiration, negative pressure is created through the larynx, which results in a collapse of these structures into the airway and a narrower breathing passage. The partial obstruction is the source of the noise with breathing. He could do surgery and snip open the larynx to help it mature, but he feels she will outgrow this by 12 months. Reflux and laryngomalacia go hand-in-hand. He did a scope down her throat and said it was moderate, but she has no obstruction in her airways, which is what I was worried about. Also, another issue is the shape of her head on the left side. From very early in my pregnancy she was very low in my pelvis, causing positional plagiocephaly. Positional plagiocephaly is a non-synostotic asymmetrical head shape that results over time from being in the same position, which Caroline's was caused due to restrictive intrauterine environment. We are going to see a specialist to see if she will need to wear a helmet to correct it. It hasn't seemed to get better since birth. David and I always position her to take pressure off that side, but she prefers to turn her head in that direction, so it is sometimes a challenge. We have extensive periods of tummy time, which she isn't a huge fan, but she does seem to like it more everyday. I have a feeling the doctor will want to give it until she is 4 months old and then have her fitted for a helmet it we don't see improvement. We are just thankful that she does not have craniosynostosis. It is a medical condition in which some or all of the sutures in the skull of an infant or child close too early, causing problems with normal brain and skull growth. The x-rays showed no signs of this. But, the most important thing overall with all this said is she is healthy and thriving very well!! She is becoming a great sleeper!! Most nights she will sleep from 11-7. She has started taking two long naps a day in her crib. Thanks for all the prayers and thoughts of our sweet girl.