What if the child does not get a cough?

Alas, most children get sick and cough from time to time, moreover, they can cough for a long time, so many parents face this problem. And you need to know what to do if the child does not get cough.

There is no single universal method for solving this problem, since cough occurs for various reasons. So, first of all, it is necessary to understand the causes of cough causing to have in the arsenal of methods of its treatment only medically substantiated and effective means.

Why does the child not get a cough?

To get an answer to this question, a doctor is needed: only a professional can accurately establish the etiology of a long-lasting cough, that is, diagnose the disease whose symptom he is. From this will depend on the treatment, which can be symptomatic (relief and easing of coughing) or etiological (elimination of the cause of coughing).

From the physiological and medical point of view, cough (in Latin - tussis) is a reflex reaction of the cough center of the brain in response to signals from irritated respiratory tract receptors. And such sensitive nerve endings are present not only in the nasopharynx or bronchial tubes, but also in the diaphragm zone, in the outer shell of the heart (pericardium), in the esophagus and even in the mucous membrane of the stomach.

Pediatricians include long-term respiratory infections, chronic tonsillitis and sinusitis, pharyngitis (including atrophic), tracheitis, laryngotracheitis, adenoiditis, chronic bronchitis, pneumonia, respiratory mycoplasmosis or chlamydia, the presence of cytomegalovirus, respiratory allergies ( allergic pharyngitis and tracheitis, eosinophilic bronchitis and bronchial asthma).

In infants, persistent coughing during feeding can be caused by oropharyngeal or esophageal dysphagia - a violation of the swallowing reflex and the passage of food into the esophagus.

Cough that does not go away for a long time may indicate problems with the thyroid gland (hypothyroidism), bronchialectasia problems, left ventricular failure, gastroesophageal reflux, tuberculosis, intestinal dysbiosis or the presence of worms in the child. Finally, it is possible that a prolonged dry cough in a child is one of the clinical symptoms of papillomatosis or the cyst of the larynx, as well as the initial stage of inherited cystic fibrosis.

Now you obviously have a clear idea of what to do if the child does not have a cough? Quite right, go to a good doctor and examine the baby. Moreover, one must be prepared for the fact that an otolaryngologist, an allergist, a pulmonologist or a gastroenterologist can be brought to the examination.

It should be noted that, according to pediatricians, only one case of long-term cough in children of ten is not associated with infectious inflammation of the respiratory tract such as ARVI, tonsillitis or bronchitis.

If the child does not get cough: possible treatment options

As can be seen from all of the above, coughing is different - and not only in the sense of its cause. "The number and quality" of cough can vary in a wide range of features of the manifestation of this symptom: dry and with phlegm, with wheezing and whistling, leading almost to vomiting and having the appearance of a slight coughing ...

What if the child does not get cough due to infectious inflammatory diseases of the upper respiratory tract? In such cases, it is necessary to use drugs with mucolytic and enveloping effects, so that dry cough (as doctors say, unproductive) has become wet (productive). For very young children (up to 2-2,5 years) this is enough: a sputum coughs out the child and thus the factor annoying the cough receptors will disappear. That is, the cough will pass. Older children, taking into account the often occurring spasm of the bronchi, are prescribed mukokinetic (expectorant) and bronchodilator funds. But with a very strong (before vomiting) debilitating cough, you may need drugs that block the receptors of the Tension zone of the respiratory tract or the cough center.

In case of prolonged dry cough, Ambroxol is recommended in children (other trade names are Ambrobe, Ambrohexal, Lazolvan, Ambrolitic, etc.) or Acetylcysteine (ACTS, Acystein, Acestad).

Ambroxol syrup dosage for children under 2 years - 2.5 ml 2 times a day; 2-5 years - 2.5 ml three times a day; after 5 years - 2-3 times a day for 5 ml. Assigned to laryngitis, tracheitis and pneumonia Acetylcysteine is also suitable for cough treatment in cystic fibrosis. The instructions to this drug indicate that it can be used from the age of two, but pediatricians recommend this drug only after 12 years (100-200 mg three times a day) And if the doctor has prescribed antibiotics at the same time, Acetylcysteine should be taken two hours after them.

To relieve coughing attacks with viscous, hard-to-cough, phlegm, doctors can recommend combined preparations of Guaifenesin (Tussin) or Ascoril. Guaifenesin can not be used until two years of age. A single dose is 2.5-5 ml (every 4 hours), the maximum daily dose is 20 ml; for children 6-12 years the dosage is doubled. Taking this medicine a child should give more drink. Ascoril is prescribed up to 6 years for 5 ml three times a day, children 6-12 years - 5-10 ml. At use It is necessary to consider, that both these agents raise sputum production, therefore at productive cough they can not be applied.

What should I do if my child does not get cough with phlegm?

To facilitate the excretion of sputum with moist cough, they need plant-based products containing the althaea root (Althea syrup), licorice root, mother-stepmother leaves and plantain, sweet-mantle grass, oregano, angelica, thyme (thyme). Of these medicinal plants are prepared decoctions from the calculation: one tablespoon of dry raw materials per 250 ml of water (boil 10 minutes and 20 minutes to insist under the lid). Take them after meals - 50-100 liters twice a day.

Well-known Pertussin (taken on a tea or dessert spoon three times a day) contains an extract of thyme, which has antimicrobial properties, and it helps with a dry cough - as an expectorant and emollient. Medicinal product of plant origin Bronchipret also contains thyme (essential oil), and still the extract is pinched, due to which it helps to remove a secret accumulating in the bronchi. Drops Bronchitis can be taken from three months (10-15 drops three times a day, after meals). After a year, the dosage is 10 drops plus one drop for each year of life.

Ammonia and anise drops have not lost their effectiveness in facilitating the expectoration of sputum, which should be taken to children over 12 years old - 10-12 drops (previously diluted in a tablespoon of water) 3-4 times during the day.

Do not forget about the inhalation of fermented alkaline mineral water or ordinary baking soda (500 ml boiling water - a tablespoon), as well as inhalations with infusion of eucalyptus leaves and pine buds (a glass of boiling water - a tablespoon).

What if the child does not get a cough, leading him to vomiting and not giving a normal sleep? It is for such situations that the medicines of the mucoregulatory principle of action, which affect the cough center, are intended. For example, syrup from cough Sinekod (Butamirat) is recommended for children: 3-6 years - 5 ml of the drug three times a day, 6-12 years - 10 ml, over 12 years - 15 ml three times a day. For children under 3 years of age, use of syrup is contraindicated. A single dose of Sinecode in drops (4 doses per day): children from 2 months to a year - 10 drops, 1-3 years - 15, and older than 3 years - 25 drops. Newborns up to 2 months of this drug is contraindicated. Receiving Sinecoda can cause side effects (headache, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, itching of the skin and urticaria).

What if the child does not have a cough of an allergic nature?

A child allergist who identified a specific allergen that causes respiratory allergies in a child apparently recommended this allergen (cat, parrots, fish, new woolen carpet, etc.) to be removed from the apartment. And, of course, I prescribed an antihistamine. It is best if it is a last-generation remedy that does not give excessive drowsiness and does not dry out the mucous membranes (for example, Erius or Cytisin). Preparations of this group are appointed individually - depending on the intensity of manifestation of respiratory allergic symptoms.

Cough of allergic origin is removed with the help of inhaled corticosteroids (Beclomethasone, Beclazon, Budesonide, etc.), the purpose of which is entirely within the competence of the attending physician.

We tried to imagine although part of what to do if the child does not get cough. With the number of possible causes of prolonged cough, parents should not risk the health of children - seek medical help in a timely manner.