Secondary Drowning In Children – Recommendations

With the arrival of summer and frequenting the pools,  secondary drowning is becoming an increasingly common event. It is a sad reality that affects both adults and children. The latter require special attention in such situations.

Always monitor children  when they are in the water and make sure there is a grill above the drain filter. These precautions are essential for the little ones to swim safely.

We are sure that you too are shaken to hear about such terrible accidents. Because of them, many innocent children lose their lives.

But you should know that there is another type of accident that is not as well known, but which causes many casualties among children.

We are referring to the secondary drowning. We are talking here about people who almost drowned, were saved and resurrected. 

They return home feeling normal, but after a few hours or days, they feel tired. They lie down in bed to sleep and do not wake up. Terrible, but true.

We present information about the secondary drowning, which you should remember for the safety of you and your little ones.

Secondary drowning: a silent death

We will start by telling you about a recent case. Lindsay Kujawa is known for her original blog with recipes, crafts, personal thoughts from a mother’s perspective, etc.

The Huffington Post and other publications immediately reported what happened, and soon the story appeared on the woman’s blog. F in July they almost drowned in a pool at a party. He stayed underwater for only a few seconds and was fortunately resurrected.

Everything seemed to be fine, but Lindsay also preferred to tell the pediatrician what had happened, leaving a message in her voicemail. The woman was surprised by the prompt reaction of the specialist who told her to take the child to the emergency room as soon as possible.

When Lindsay went to get her son, he just wanted to sleep. He was very tired and weak. Something was wrong. After the child underwent several tests in the hospital, the answer became as clear as possible.

The baby’s lungs were irritated and inflamed due to chemicals in the pool water. The level of oxygen in the body was constantly decreasing. The little boy was drowning without realizing it.

The doctors managed to save him by providing him with the necessary attention and medical care. His case was a lucky one due to the vigilance of the doctors, the pediatrician and his mother, Lindsay Kujawa. She was careful and informed the doctor about the accident, shortly after it took place.

What you need to know about secondary drowning and dry drowning

Not all stories have an equally happy ending. Many children lose their lives this way. After being rescued from drowning, it can take up to three days without the little ones showing clear symptoms, which can lead to tragedy.

• Dry drowning occurs when the body and brain “feel” that they are inhaling water. This causes spasms in the larynx, which closes as a way to defend the body. Neither water nor air can enter the body, and the victim is left without oxygen.
• Secondary drowning occurs when water enters the lungs and remains there. The child may be resuscitated, but blocked water eventually causes pulmonary edema. Pulmonary edema may be asymptomatic for a while, but after a few hours or days it can lead to death.

• We must also keep in mind that pool water contains a lot of chemicals. If it gets stuck in the lungs, it can cause inflammation and irritation in these organs.
• Chlorine irritates the bronchi very much. 
• After being rescued from drowning, the baby can remove water and be resurrected. However, some of it may become blocked in the lungs. After a few hours, the water leads to inflammation of the bronchial tubes, causing edema and low oxygen levels.

recommendation

• If your child is involved in such an incident, be it a minor one and even if it seems to be okay, it doesn’t matter: take him to the emergency room.

• Do not lose sight of your baby when he is in the water. 
• Teach him to swim from an early age.
• Even if you trust him to be a very good swimmer, he may feel slightly dizzy or cling to an object in the pool.  It is best to constantly monitor its activity.
• Continue to enjoy the water with your children on hot summer days, but take into account all the information we have provided. Deserve!