Note to choose cough medicine for children

This is an automatically translated article.

Due to the immature respiratory system, the baby may experience side effects of cough medicine. For example, cough medicines contain antihistamines, which have a side effect of causing drowsiness. Therefore, parents should be careful when using cough medicine for children.

1. Causes of Cough in Children

Cough is often a sign that the child's body is reacting to external factors, limiting the entry of foreign objects or participating in the expulsion of secretions.
Some cough conditions such as a child with a dry cough, a cough with a runny nose and vomiting, a cough with phlegm, a cough that lasts for a long time, and a cough at night are things that make parents very worried. The cause is due to:
Diseases related to the upper respiratory tract: Common diseases such as colds, rhinitis, pharyngitis, sinusitis, tonsillitis often dry cough, or cough with phlegm due to secretions from the sinuses. or posterior nose. Diseases related to the lower respiratory tract: Possible causes such as laryngitis with hoarseness, dry cough with resounding cough, bronchitis, pneumonia, bronchiolitis,... Some other causes: Other common causes include cough due to gastroesophageal reflux disease, cough due to allergies, cough caused by physical and chemical agents such as inhaling secondhand smoke.

2. Should you buy your own cough medicine?

When the baby has a cough, parents should consult the doctor before giving the baby any medicine. In fact, most doctors do not encourage parents to arbitrarily give drugs to young children.
When the child is 6 years old, parents can go to the pharmacy to buy cough medicine for the baby, but need to use it according to the instructions of the pharmacist at the counter and note:
The appropriate dose of the medicine for the child's age . Children should not be given more than 2 drugs at the same time, because each drug often contains many different active ingredients and accidentally gives children an overdose of an active ingredient, leading to undesirable side effects. desire.

3. Note to choose cough medicine for children

Dry cough: In case the child has a dry cough, a severe cough, a dry and itchy throat but the nose is not runny and not stuffy, it is recommended to use cough medicine alone before going to bed.
Cough with moderate sputum: If the child coughs with light phlegm, a few coughs every hour, the child still sleeps well; or if there is stagnation in the chest, it is difficult to cough up sputum, you should use an expectorant. The expectorant, mucolytic group reduces the consistency of sputum and mucus to make it easier to cough up, but can cause pulmonary effusion and damage the protective mucus layer of the stomach lining. An expectorant is not an antitussive because it has no effect on the mechanism that causes the cough, and does not stop the cough.
Runny nose, stuffy nose: Use antihistamines and anti-nasal drugs if your baby's runny and stuffy nose interferes with sleep but rarely coughs. Most medications only last 4-6 hours, so the dose can be repeated at night.
stuffy nose: In case the baby has a stuffy nose but the runny nose is not much, the anti-nasal medicine will help the baby to be more comfortable. The drug also helps to dry up the secretions. Nasal decongestants should be used during the day because it affects the child's sleep. Cough, stagnation in the chest: If the child coughs with sputum, affecting sleep or daytime activities but the nose is not runny and not stuffy, use a combination of cough suppressants and expectorants.
Cough at night, stuffy nose, runny nose, stagnation in the chest: Combination of antihistamines/anti-nasal drip/cough suppressants when children have itchy, stuffy and runny nose; accompanied by a lot of cough, affecting sleep. Note: These cough medicines should be used at night because the antihistamine ingredients will make the child sleepy.

4. Some ways to care for children when they have a cough

Weak immune system is the reason why the baby is prone to cough when the weather changes. Cough can make baby tired, loss of appetite, startled awake, even reflux of milk and food... The wrong handling can affect the baby's health. Here are some notes for mothers when taking care of a coughing baby:
Dropping physiological saline into the nose: in many cases, children have a cough with increased nasal secretions, causing difficulty breathing, affecting sleep and making children uncomfortable when eating. Then parents should drop physiological saline into the nose to help reduce mucus in the nose and reduce swelling of the respiratory tract, making it easier for children to cough and expel phlegm. Give your child more water to drink: adding water can help reduce mucus in the nose and respiratory tract, making it easier for children to breathe and cough. You can give your child drinks such as water, juice, milk. Children under 6 months of age should only be breastfed. Use a small amount of honey: honey helps soothe the throat and relieve cough. You can give your child 1/2 teaspoon of honey before going to bed. But note that this method should not be used for children under 1 year old. Elevated head pillow when lying down: You can give your child a higher pillow or add a towel to the pillow to raise the head higher, this will help the baby breathe easier and the cough will also reduce. Use an air humidifier: Using a humidifier in the bedroom at night will help your child breathe easier and reduce the irritation that causes coughing. Prepare foods that are easy to swallow: A child's throat may become swollen, sore, and scratched from coughing. Therefore, parents should pay attention to prepare soft, smooth and easy-to-swallow foods so as not to cause discomfort and ensure nutrition during illness for children. Warm drinks such as chicken soup, hot chocolate also help soothe the throat.

In the following case, parents need to call an ambulance or take the child to the doctor immediately for a cough accompanied by one of the following signs:
The child has cyanosis of the lips and around the lips. Baby is tired, breathing hard. Baby stops breathing. Appears very weak or tired The child or parent feels a foreign body is stuck in the throat Feeling uncomfortable when breathing or talking Cough with vomiting. Purple face or lips when coughing Chest pain when breathing deeply Coughing and wheezing Drooling or difficulty swallowing Babies under 4 months of age with a rectal temperature above 39°C Baby high fever 40°C, does not improve within two hours after using the antipyretic. The infant sucks poorly or refuses to suckle.

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Interview history of drug use, control of drugs used by the patient before hospital admission; Pharmacovigilance activities include: Management of adverse drug reactions (ADRs); Medication Error Management (ME) As a result, the patient's drug treatment process at Vinmec is always guaranteed to be transparent and consistent

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