Question: I'm writing for my son. He was born at 36 weeks, with no complications at birth. Despite some initial low APGAR scores, he was fine. He was a sickly baby/toddler/kid with recurring infections that required antibiotics. When he was 1, he had bronchitis twice, then pneumonia back to back to back. He has had two ear tube surgeries and another to remove his adenoids. That seemed to "cure" him for awhile but his health has gone worse again this year. He has had two ear infections, strep and an upper respiratory infection with wheezing that doctors think might have been pneumonia but never sent him for an XRAY. We have been referred to an allergist, where we discovered that he had all the allergies listed and he has started allergy shots. He had his immune system tested (IgG, IgA, IgM) and all came back normal. The only thing that was out of range was his red blood cell count which was too high. Is this a normal thing that doctors wouldn't be concerned about or is it something that requires more testing possibly. While I am overjoyed that his immune system does work, I'm not satisfied to believe that a kid who has been on antibiotics 5 times in a year is a normal thing. He has 3 other siblings who share the same house, space, food and toys and the other siblings haven't been sick in 2 years. Please let me know if I need a second opinion or more testing for himMy son is 9 years old. Weighs 65 pounds. Takes Zyrtec and Flonase. Just began allergy shots. Takes Benadryl at night as needed. No smoking, not a smoking house.
Previous medical issues: recurrent upper respiratory infections (ear infections, strep, bronchitis, pneumonia), fall/spring/dust mite allergies, recurrent cough and wheezing (possible asthma but not diagnosed), recurrent bouts of itching/hives that can be managed through Benadryl.

Hi. Thank you for this. He has never had a PFT before. And although he never got a chest X-ray for his pneumonia, he also had an ear infection at that time, so the doctor gave him an antibiotic. His breathing seems ok now but I worry that he may get sick again once he is off meds. He has been sick a lot.
Yes, he is also getting the flu shot every year.
I guess my main concern was about how frequently he gets sick. I just didn't know if the high red blood cell count on the report was something I should worry about or not. It seems crazy that he gets sick all the time and now he has high red blood cell count. But if its normal, then I won't worry about it. Thanks for your help.