Moms everywhere are panicking a little more this summer with the latest news of a child dying from what is referred to as dry drowning. Ten-year-old Jonny Jackson of South Carolina had been swimming with his family when his lungs filled with water. The boy walked home talking with his mother and sister before dying an hour later. Many parents are in shock and fear on how a kid could die from drowning an hour after leaving the pool.
His mom says he showed no signs of distress. At the time of the incident in the pool, he did have an accident and soil himself. But Jackson later walked and talked the way home.
"We physically walked home. He walked with me," Jackson told MSNBC, still trying to understand how her son could have died. "I bathed him, and he told me that he was sleepy."
It was after he had gone to sleep that his mother found him with a white sticky material over his face. According to the Centers for Disease Control, some 3,600 people drowned in 2005, the most recent year for which there are statistics. Some 10 to 15 percent of those deaths was classified as "dry drowning," which can occur up to 24 hours after a small amount of water gets into the lungs. In children, that can happen during a bath.
What is dry drowning? Dry drowning is basically drowning without water. With dry drowning, you are not drowning from an immediate immersion in water; it is more of a delayed effect of a small amount of water in the lungs.
Kids and adults with asthma are at a higher risk for dry drowning. Kids or adults who are first time swimmers or inexperienced can also have a higher risk for dry drowning.
So how do I know if my child is suffering from a dry drowning episode? The good news is that there are some warning signs for dry drowning. They are as follows:
Persistent cough
Shortness of breath
Chest pain
Lethargic
A change in mental status
Dry drowning can be treated. If your child has had a near drowning experience, watch for these symptoms and take them to the local emergency room. As parents, be proactive in the pool. Keep a close eye on your child. A lifetime of memories can be gone in a blink of an eye.
