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Allergic cough in children: how to recognize and properly treat it?
Last reviewed: 05.07.2025
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Is the child unwell again? And after another sleepless night spent by his bed in vain efforts to curb attacks of excruciating cough, the mother decides to call the doctor. True, at the clinic they always ask about the temperature. But most mothers will think: nothing, I will say that +37.5°C. Although it is strange, despite such a strong cough, the child's temperature is normal, and the throat is not red...
A good pediatrician knows that a dry, paroxysmal cough can be a sign of anything, including rhinovirus or adenovirus infection, chlamydia and mycoplasma, measles, whooping cough, croup, a foreign body in the trachea, and even hypertrophy of the thymus gland. In the end, it could just be an allergic cough in children.
But in reality, it's not that simple. Coughing has a physiological purpose: to clear the respiratory tract of everything that got there. With an allergic cough in children and adults, an allergen gets into the respiratory tract, to which their body reacts as if to an alien from another galaxy.
[ Causes of allergic cough in children - allergens
Among the causes of allergic cough in children, doctors name such typical irritants as dust, pollen of flowering plants, animal hair (cats, dogs, guinea pigs, hamsters), bird feathers (parrots and canaries in a cage or down-feather "filling" of pillows), mold spores and bacteria that have entered the child's body through the mucous membrane of the upper respiratory tract. Therefore, an allergic cough can begin not only in spring or summer, but at any time of the year.
Dry allergic cough in children is very often a protective reaction of the body to mites that live in... ordinary house dust. Thus, according to medical statistics, the etiology of bronchial asthma in 67% of children diagnosed with this condition is an allergy to dust mites. By the way, our apartments (in mattresses, blankets, pillows, carpets, books, upholstered furniture) are home to hordes of these microscopic arachnids - almost 150 species of dermatophagoid or pyroglyphid mites. Their main food is systematically peeling particles of the upper layer of human skin (epidermis). The waste products of mites (excrement) contain proteins, which cause allergic reactions in people with increased sensitivity.
The greatest tendency to allergies, including cough, is noted in children who suffered from diathesis in infancy (impaired adaptation with frequent allergic reactions and reduced resistance to infection). According to doctors, such children are predisposed to allergies from birth.
It should also be borne in mind that the likelihood of allergic cough in children is higher where there are people in the family who suffer from allergies. Allergic cough is most often diagnosed in children aged one to seven years.
Symptoms of Allergic Cough in Children
The main feature of allergic cough in children is that it has a clinical picture that, in some ways, resembles cough in acute respiratory diseases. That is why it is most often mistaken for a sign of a cold or acute respiratory viral infection.
However, an allergic cough usually begins at a normal body temperature. The child feels unwell: he or she becomes lethargic, easily irritated, and more capricious than usual. Attacks of dry, throat-scratching, painful coughing occur unexpectedly, mostly at night. The cough may be accompanied by itching in the throat and nose, sneezing, and a slight runny nose. During prolonged coughing attacks, the child may begin to cough up clear sputum, but this does not make things any easier. The child breathes with a wheeze (when exhaling) and complains of chest pain when coughing.
The main area of allergic inflammation, the manifestation of which is allergic cough in children, is the larynx and trachea, and this is allergic laryngotracheitis. If due to
If the allergen affects the inflammation localized in the pharynx, then doctors diagnose allergic pharyngitis. Allergic laryngitis is defined by inflammation of the larynx, allergic tracheitis - by the inflammatory process in the trachea, allergic bronchitis - in the bronchi.
The disease can worsen several times during the month, and this happens more often in autumn and winter. And parents need to remember that with such symptoms of allergic cough in children, "treating a cold" with mustard plasters, rubbing or herbal cough decoctions is a waste of time. And it cannot be wasted, because such a cough without adequate treatment can develop into chronic obstructive bronchitis, and then into bronchial asthma.
Diagnosis of allergic cough in children
Only an allergist can identify the real cause of an allergic cough. For this purpose, the child is examined, including a whole range of laboratory tests (general blood test, sputum test, nasal smear for eosinophils), clarification of the condition of the respiratory organs and the pathological processes occurring in them (using computer bronchophonography), as well as tests for allergens.
But the primary task of diagnosing allergic cough in children is to determine the allergen (or allergens) causing the disease. And here a proven method comes to the rescue - skin allergy tests (skin testing). They are done on plant pollen, household allergens, as well as on medicinal irritants - for children aged four years and older.
Another diagnostic method in allergology is enzyme immunoassay (EIA). This method allows you to detect and measure the number of specific antigens that the body produces and releases into the blood plasma in response to the penetration of foreign cells. By the type of antigen detected, you can find out which allergen caused such a reaction of the body.
The most modern method of allergy diagnostics, including diagnostics of allergic cough in children, is considered to be the multiple chemiluminescence assay – MAST. By comparing the allergen (or several allergens) detected in the patient with a whole set of standard allergens, it is possible to make the most accurate diagnosis, even with hidden forms of allergy.
Treatment of allergic cough in children
Complex treatment of allergic cough in children is aimed at reducing sensitivity to the allergen (desensitization), getting rid of it as much as possible (immunotherapy), and also relieving symptoms - bronchial spasm.
To reduce sensitivity to the allergen, antihistamines (antiallergic) drugs are used as a general treatment for allergic cough in children. They block histamine, a mediator of the human body's reactions to allergens.
It should be noted that frequently prescribed first-generation antiallergic drugs (diphenhydramine, diprazine, suprastin, pilfen, pipolfen, tavegil) not only have a sedative (calming) effect and cause drowsiness. Among the negative side effects of these popular drugs, their effect on the formation of nerve connections in children, even at average therapeutic doses, has been found. In addition, taking these medications leads to dryness of the respiratory tract mucosa, that is, the cough can become more intense with thick sputum to boot. It is for this reason that these drugs are given to children for a maximum of five days. For example, tavegil (aka clemastine) is strictly contraindicated for children under one year old. And children under 12 years of age are prescribed 0.5 tablets 2 times a day (before meals, with a small amount of water).
The latest generation of antihistamines - claritin, fenistil, zyrtec, kestin - do not have a sedative effect. Thus, claritin (also known as lomilan, lotharen, klallergin, etc.) is available in the form of tablets and syrup. The dose of the drug for children from 2 to 12 years old is 5 ml of syrup (1 teaspoon) or half a tablet (5 mg) with a body weight of no more than 30 kg; for children over 12 years old, the daily dose is 1 tablet (10 mg) or 2 teaspoons of syrup.
The best, although the longest (for three to five years) treatment for any allergy and allergic cough in children is allergen-specific immunotherapy (ASIT), which "trains" the body's immune system to allergens. The method is based on the introduction of gradually increasing doses of the same allergen that causes an allergic reaction to the patient. As allergists claim, as a result of this treatment, the immune system simply stops reacting to a previously intolerable irritant.
Symptomatic treatment of allergic cough in children is carried out with the help of antispasmodic drugs, which reduce or completely relieve bronchial spasms and coughing fits. The drug Berotek in the form of a 0.1% solution for inhalation counteracts the development of bronchospastic reactions. It is prescribed to children aged 6-12 years, 5-10 drops, over 12 years - 10-15 drops per inhalation. Inhalations are carried out no more than four times a day, before use the drug must be diluted in one teaspoon of saline solution.
An effective expectorant, solutan (oral solution), is taken by children from one to six years old, 5 drops three times a day; from six to fifteen years old - 7-10 drops. For children 2-6 years old, it is better to use salbutamol (ventolin) inhalation aerosol - 1-2 mg three times a day.
Cough syrup glycodin with terpin hydrate and levomenthol should be taken 3-4 times a day: children aged 4-6 years - a quarter of a teaspoon, 7-12 years - half a teaspoon. And the drug fluifort in the form of syrup has a mucolytic (thinning phlegm) and expectorant effect. Children aged 1 to 5 years are prescribed half a teaspoon 2-3 times a day, older children - a teaspoon three times a day.
Prevention of allergic cough in children
Prevention of allergic cough in children is possible and depends only on the consistency and persistence of parents. Daily wet cleaning of the house, especially in the children's room, should become a rule without exception. It is recommended to clean the air in the apartment and control its humidity.
In the room where a child suffering from an allergic cough lives, there is no place for woolen carpets and rugs, fabric curtains, a soft sofa or armchair, as well as indoor plants. Even plush and fur toys should not be in this room, not to mention living "carriers of wool" - a dog or a cat.
To prevent allergic cough in children, wool blankets and feather pillows will have to be replaced with bedding made of hypoallergenic artificial materials. And the linen on the child's bed should be changed twice a week and thoroughly washed in very hot water.