For parents enjoying time at the pool with their kids, it’s a frightening prospect — the possibility that a child can drown after getting out of the water.
Two phenomena can cause atypical drowning — dry drowning and secondary drowning. Both can occur after a child has struggled in the water and is rescued, and both can cause brain injury, respiratory problems or even death.
“This is why every child who has fallen into the water or experienced a near-drowning should be taken to the emergency room immediately,” says pediatrician Elumalai Appachi, MD. “If we can intervene quickly, it’s possible for a child to recover.”
“In a normal drowning, a swimmer will aspirate a lot of water into their lungs as they struggle in the water,” says Dr. Appachi. “In dry drowning, the larynx goes shut as a protective response. No water gets in, but no air gets in either.”
It’s called a laryngospasm — a constriction of muscles in the airway. The longer it takes for the larynx to relax, the longer the body is deprived of oxygen.
“Being deprived of oxygen for even a few minutes is fatal,” says Dr. Appachi. “Kids with heart defects and respiratory difficulties like asthma are at particular risk.”
Secondary drowning occurs when water is aspirated into the lungs and collects there as a person struggles in the water. That collection of fluid in the lungs is called pulmonary edema, which causes difficult or rapid breathing that can make a “crackle” sound.
“Within an hour, you will start seeing those respiratory difficulties,” Dr. Appachi says. “Secondary drowning can be severe enough that a child can end up on a ventilator.”
Watch closely, rescue quickly
The younger the child, the more closely he or she needs to be watched in the water, says Dr. Appachi. In the case of babies and toddlers, for instance, just a few inches of bath water can be enough to cause them to drown.
“Watch them closely and rescue them quickly,” he says. “Even if they are submerged for a minute or two, they should go to the hospital immediately.”