Inhalations for runny nose in children and infants

A runny nose is a problem that is sometimes difficult to avoid even for an adult, let alone our children, who can run around with a runny nose all autumn and winter. And no matter how hard parents try to dress their child according to the weather, it is not always possible to avoid a runny nose in a child in cold weather.

There is nothing surprising here, because after the birth of a child, another 3 or more years will pass before his immune system will function at a high level, protecting the body from the penetration of pathogens. It turns out that the baby's defense is weak, therefore the percentage of respiratory pathologies is higher than in adults.

Children get sick more often, but it is more difficult to treat them, because not every drug used to treat an adult is suitable for treating a child. And the side effects of drugs are more dangerous for children, especially when it comes to oral or intravenous administration.

In this regard, local treatment of the disease can be considered the safest way to get rid of it. However, treatment of the nose with external drops, ointments and sprays does not solve the problem of infection and inflammation deep in the nasal passages, much less cope with those pests that have penetrated a little deeper (into the throat and bronchi). But inhalations cope with this task perfectly with a runny nose.

Inhalation therapy rarely causes protest in a child, because the baby does not experience any unpleasant sensations. The recommended duration of procedures for children is only 5-10 minutes, so they simply do not have time to bore the baby.

It is especially convenient and safe to carry out inhalations for children with a runny nose using a nebulizer. Steam inhalations, especially effective at the beginning of the disease, carry the risk of burning the mucous membrane, so pediatricians are skeptical about them. However, in the absence of inhalers, such an effective procedure, which allows you to simultaneously treat the nose, throat and initial sections of the bronchi, is not worth it. Just when preparing for inhalation, you need to make sure that the temperature of the medicinal composition does not exceed 35-40 degrees. Before sitting the baby in front of the saucepan, you need to first check the temperature of the steam on yourself.

During steam inhalations, parents should constantly be near the child and monitor his condition. Such procedures can be started from 2-3 years of age, explaining to the child how to bend over and breathe over the steam. It is better if the child sits during the procedure.

If the baby starts to be capricious, cry, complain that he is dizzy or very hot, this is a signal that the treatment session should be interrupted.

Today, in pharmacies and medical equipment stores, you can buy inhalers for every taste and budget. Such a device can significantly ease the task of parents. Especially when it comes to the safest and most effective devices, called nebulizers. They provide deep penetration of drugs into the patient's respiratory tract and do not carry the risk of burning the mucous membranes.

With the help of a nebulizer, you can safely perform inhalations for a runny nose even for infants, for whom a runny nose is a common occurrence. However, inhalations for small children can only be done as prescribed by a doctor, who must first determine the cause of the runny nose. Perhaps we are not talking about respiratory pathology, but about a violation of the patency of the nasolacrimal canals.

Many nebulizer models have nasal attachments for the smallest ones. But if there is no such attachment, do not be upset. For inhalations, you can use a mask that fits the size of the baby's head. The mask is conveniently attached to the head and does not interfere with the baby's rest, so it can be safely put on during the baby's sleep, making sure that the reservoir is in an upright position.

During inhalations, doctors advise not to talk, which is not so easy for naturally curious young children. To distract the child and make the procedure more enjoyable, you can offer him to listen to a fairy tale or watch a cartoon.

As for inhalation compositions, preference should be given to safer infusions of hypoallergenic herbs with a small amount of essential oils, solutions of salt and soda, potato broth (in the case of steam inhalations), saline solution. Antiseptics, antibiotics and especially hormonal anti-inflammatory drugs can be used for inhalations for children only as prescribed by the attending physician and in the prescribed dosages. Local use of the above-mentioned agents, of course, excludes the absorption of large doses of the drug, but still, it is not worth risking the child's health.

Speaking about the duration of the inhalation procedure for a child, it should be noted that pediatricians advise that the treatment session for infants should be no more than 5 minutes, for children over 1 year old, the duration of inhalation can be gradually increased to 10 minutes. This applies to both steam inhalations and procedures carried out using special medical devices.

The choice of a nebulizer should be determined not only by the ease of use, but also by the type of solutions that will need to be poured into the tank. For example, silent and compact ultrasound devices, although convenient to use (many people appreciate them because they do not frighten the child with a loud sound, like compressor ones), the choice of solutions used in them is limited. And membrane devices, although they provide the opportunity to treat with various solutions, have the highest cost.

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