On the 22nd, Billy hit two months old which meant that the highlight of this week was his first doctor visit in about six weeks. This was no ordinary visit. Instead it promised to be equally stressful on both Mom and baby as Billy was getting his first vaccinations. The vaccinations would consist of four shots and an oral vaccine. First up was the oral vaccine for Rotavirus. Rotavirus causes severe diarrhea, vomiting, and fever in children. It is one of the most serious causes of these symptoms in kids under the age of 5. Fever is never good, but the other two can also lead to dehydration, which is bad news for babies.
The oral went down pretty smooth, so they proceeded to the shots. The nurse lined them up and he was going to get two per leg, right in the pudgy little thighs. Well, turns out Billy's a screamer. They didn't even make it to the second shot before he was already screaming his head off. First time feeling a stinging sensation, I guess. He pretty much screamed his lungs out through the remaining three shots after the first and took about 3 minutes to calm down afterward. Antoinette tried to play it off so that he would calm down sooner and it worked for the most part.
Of the shots to the legs, the first was a Polio vaccine. Polio is caused by a virus and until this vaccine was developed, it was responsible for 20,000 cases a year. In 1916 alone, Polio was responsible for 6,000 deaths and 27,000 additional cases of paralysis. The vaccine began to be administered in 1955 and by 1979, there were just 10 cases in the US. There has not been a case in the US in 20 years. Billy will have three more shots of this vaccine culminating with his final shot at age 5.
The second shot was for Pneumococcal Disease. This disease causes blood infections, pneumonia, and bacterial meningitis in small children. Pneumococcal Meningitis kills 30% of people who contract it and for those that don't die, deafness and brain damage can result. Prior to this vaccine, there were 700 cases of meningitis, 13 thousand blood infections, 5 million ear infections, and 200 deaths per year in the US in children under the age of 5. Children under the age of 2 are at the greatest risk. The PCV vaccine guards against 7 of the 91 most severe strains of this disease. Since its inception, cases in children under 5 have dropped by 80%. Billy is due for four doses of this, as well, with his final shot coming at one year.
The third shot is for Haemophilus Influenzae type b (Hib). Another disease that typically targets children under the age of 5. This disease often gets into the lungs of bloodstream and can cause major problems. This was the leading cause of bacterial meningitis in children in the US prior to this vaccine coming out. It can cause deafness, brain damage, pneumonia, severe throat swelling, infections of the blood, joints, bones, and the covering of the heart, and can also lead to death. Prior to the vaccination, there were 20,000 cases of Hib per year and 1,000 deaths. Like the others, there are four shots with the final coming at 12 months or 1 year.
The final shot was a three for one shot addressing Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis. Diphtheria causes a thick covering at the back of the throat that can lead to breathing problems, paralysis, heart failure, and death. Tetanus (lockjaw) causes a painful tightening of the muscles, typically all over the body. It can lead to locking of the jaw so the person cannot open their mouth or swallow and leads to death in 20% of cases. Pertussis (Whooping Cough) causes coughing spells that make eating, drinking, and breathing difficult for infants. The spells can last for weeks at a time and can be accompanied by pneumonia, seizures, brain damage, and death. The vaccine DTaP prevents or sharply reduces these diseases. There are 5 shots of DTaP, culminating with a final shot at 5 years old.
There were plenty of other notes from the doctor visit. For instance, Billy's target weight based on his birth weight was 11 to 11.5 lbs. for this visit. He weighed in at a robust 12.5 lbs., keeping him firmly in the 75th percentile of the nation. The doctor says that this accelerated growth could certainly continue. He's also growing longer (taller) at a similar rate, measuring out at 24 inches, which puts him in the 75th percentile in that department, as well. Antoinette asked about some milk coming out of his nose when he coughs and his belly button's slow healing and the doctor said both are normal. The belly button is healing at a slower, but still healthy rate with no cause for alarm or concern (basically no sign of infection). All of his growth signs, such as eating habits, diaper wetting, etc. are all healthy and fine. Heart and lungs sound great and his ears and mouth are also doing great. He was a bit too fussy to check his eyes, but we haven't noticed anything unusual and he seems to be able to track everything you put in front of him, so that should be good, too. We'll check again on the next visit which is in two months.
On the sleep issue, Billy has drifted back from the 6 hour initial window to a 4 hour window, which the doctor also said is normal. We anticipated a regression in his sleep cycle, but didn't think we'd see it until he was about 3 months old or so. He's then on a 2.5 hour cycle after that initial 4 hour window. He's also transitioned to a new bath seat given to us by some friends (seen here in the picture this week). The new seat means that Billy has officially grown out of bathing in the sink now. It sits in the tub and actually looks pretty comfortable. He seems to like the tub for bathing and doesn't seem to mind the water at all. While he's not typically smiling while being washed, he's also not crying. More of a content balance in the middle where he just kind of stares and enjoys himself. The other neat little change in his development is a new found ability to reach for objects with his right hand when his arm is touched by that object. He'll try and lift his arm to "reach" for it, but hasn't figured out that he won't be able to grab it until he masters the art of moving those fingers around.
And now for the real shocker of the week. Antoinette was changing Billy's diaper a couple weeks ago and noticed a bluish spot on his rear. Not thinking anything of it, she let it slip her mind. A couple days ago, she was changing his diaper again (a messy one that required his legs to be lifted relatively high) and she noticed this bluish tint was actually covering the top of his little butt and the small of his lower back. The tint was slight, but definitely there. She immediately freaked out a bit thinking that his time in the swing was causing him to bruise. I had concern as well, so I decided to research this a bit. Turns out that Billy's dark skin is the likely culprit. The tint is something called Mongolian Spots, which can come in all sorts of shades, severity, etc. Billy's case is pretty mild, but certainly noticeable. The spots are actually the result of melanocytes, or melanin (pigment) containing skin cells, that are deep under the skin. They come in the form of one large patch or multiple spots and are typically found on the lower back, butt, flanks, or shoulder areas. Billy's appear confined to his rump and lower back. What happens is that the melanocytes get trapped in the dermis when migrating to the epidermal layer of the skin during embryonic development. The condition has little to do with gender as boys and girls are equally affected. The spots are harmless and they typically disappear by the age of two, with 99% gone by the age of five. In some rare, but severe cases, the spots can last until puberty, but Billy's are nothing more than a barely tinted blue backside.
One final note on my baby's blue butt. The spots are called Mongolian Spots because they generally affect babies with darker skin, like babies of Asian decent. In Asian children, the spots occur in 90% of children. In East African children, they can occur 80-90% of the time. Hispanic and Native American populations see nearly 70% of their children born with this. For general European/Caucasian children, the incidence is much lower. More like 10%. That being said, the darker skin tone of your child, the higher your probability of having this condition. Billy has a set of olive skinned parents and has quite a bit of Italian in his blood. Consequently, he has a pretty dark skin tone, as well, which is the primary driver for his particular case. Mystery solved.
Learn something new every day. Now enjoy Billy's new video...
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