COMMON INFECTIONS OF CHILDHOOD: TREATMENT AND PREVENTION
If the cough is due to asthma, it is treated appropriately with medications, depending on the nature and extent of the symptoms and the age of the child. The commonest cough, the one that follows a cold, does not need any specific treatment.
Antibiotics are not indicated in the great majority of these children because the original infection was due to a virus, and the cough is likely to be due to prolonged irritation irritation of the respiratory tract rather man to ongoing infection, Cough medicines and expectorants have not been shown to make any appreciable difference to cough. Vaporisers and humidifiers similarly have not been demonstrated to relieve coughing, and there are dangers in young children ingesting the vaporiser solution (usually containing menthol or eucalyptus).
Treatment of cough is non-specific, and antibiotics, cough medicines and expectorants, though they may make the parents feel they are doing something, rarely make any difference. Usually the cough will improve with the passage of time irrespective of what sort of treatment is given.
If the cough persists for longer than a week or two after a cold, or if there is a sudden onset of cough, or if it is significantly interfering with the child’s sleep or daily function, then your doctor should be consulted to make sure the cough is not due to asthma or an inhaled foreign body. Similarly, if there is any difficulty with breathing, or an associated high fever, then medical advice should be sought. In the majority of children, however, the child is well except for the cough and no medical consultation is usually necessary.
Prevention
If the cough is due to asthma, it can usually be prevented by appropriate treatment. The risk of inhaling foreign bodies can be minimised by not allowing toddlers and infants to eat nuts or play with small objects that can be easily inhaled. The cough that arises following a viral infection cannot be prevented.
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