What to do if a child has a dry cough without fever: how to treat it and what are the signs of dangerous diseases. How to treat a child’s cough without fever

Cough infant- a rather rare phenomenon in comparison with children aged 1 to 7 years. If the baby receives only mother's milk as food, then the risk of suffering from a cold for up to a year is minimized. If you have a runny nose and high temperature, you can suspect ARVI. If there is no snot, the thermometer shows 36.6 C, and the child begins to cough, you should be checked for allergies or whooping cough. Under no circumstances should you self-medicate, since the respiratory muscles of newborns and infants are not sufficiently developed. The baby will not be able to cough up mucus from the lungs and bronchi, which leads to stagnation of mucus in the respiratory tract and the occurrence of complications.

If the child is feeding mother's milk, the risk of catching a cold before the age of one year will be minimized

Types of cough

A baby's cough is the same protective reflex, inherent in nature, just like sneezing. Mothers worry when they notice that their child is coughing. Mild manifestation Pediatricians consider the reflex to be normal, even if the baby coughs several times a day. There are two types of cough:

1. Dry. Characteristic for initial stage ARVI, parawhooping cough and whooping cough, bronchial asthma or an allergic reaction, which makes it difficult to make a correct diagnosis. An examination by a pediatrician is necessary, since mothers without experience often mistake a wet cough for a dry one (see also:). Infant up to 3 months, swallows mucus rather than coughing it up, so parents are confused.
2. Wet. If a baby’s cough begins without fever, this means that the disease is nearing completion. There is no need to worry when the sputum is clear and thin. Yellowish or greenish mucus indicates a serious infection in the respiratory tract.

If an infant's cough is wet, does not go away within a month and is not accompanied by a fever, this may be a sign of pneumonia, tracheitis or chronic bronchitis. The bronchi of children older than six months are capable of self-cleaning, but in newborns and babies up to 5-6 months, this function has not matured. A cough occurs when mucus irritates the back wall of the nasopharynx and flows down.

Basic therapy

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Treatment of cough is always individual and is prescribed only after examination by a doctor. The course depends on the nature of the disease and includes:

• Antipyretic drugs. If the temperature rises when coughing, syrups with ibuprofen or paracetamol will help reduce it.

• Antiviral medications. ARVI can be treated with immunomodulatory drugs. Doctors recommend using Viferon suppositories, since they have no contraindications or age restrictions (we recommend reading:). The drug can be prescribed to children from birth to one year.
• Rinse the nasal passages. If the baby is having trouble breathing thick snot, he sneezes and begins to breathe through his mouth (we recommend reading:). After a short period of time, the mucous membranes in the mouth and throat will dry out, and the child will cough. Before going to bed, it is important to rinse the baby’s nose with saline or saline solution. During the day, you can instill 3 drops into each nostril 4 to 8 times. After the rinsing procedure, it is useful to put drops in the nose oil solution“Ectericide” in a dosage of 1 drop. This will create a thin layer on the mucous membranes. protective layer medicines.
• Homeopathy. To cure an infant's cough, pediatricians prescribe drugs based on natural products. Particularly popular is the Stondal syrup, which has proven itself to be an excellent antitussive, bronchodilator and expectorant.

If you have a runny nose, it is forbidden to use it for the treatment of infants. antibacterial drops. Sometimes the doctor may prescribe vasoconstrictor, if the toddler sneezes, but not for the treatment of ARVI.

If you have a cough one month old baby accompanied by snot, but the temperature remains within normal limits, this may indicate pharyngitis, laryngitis or rhinitis of allergic etiology.

Cough remedies for infants

Grudnichkov and one-year-old babies can be treated with safe forms of medications - drops and syrups. Cough medications are divided into three groups:

1. Mucolytic. They are produced on the basis of hydrochloride, acetylcysteine, bromhexine and ambroxol, which thin out thick mucus in the respiratory tract. Among the popular ones are: “Mukodin”, “Flavamed”, “Fluditek”, “Mukosol”, “Bromhexine”, “Ambrobene”, “Lazolvan”. Syrups are given to children under one year of age, but only after consultation with a pediatrician.
2. Antitussives. Prescribed for dry cough, which has the form of attacks. The drugs reduce the occurrence of the cough reflex, which is most effective in the treatment of whooping cough. Contraindications include children under 2 years of age. Panatus and Sinecod syrups are approved for children in the first year of life if therapy is carried out under the strict supervision of a doctor.
3. Expectorants. They are effective if a month-old baby’s cough is wet, but the sputum is difficult to clear (more details in the article:). Syrups based on plantain or ivy extract are prescribed. Additionally, the composition includes herbal ingredients: coltsfoot, wild rosemary, thyme, oregano, elecampane, marshmallow, licorice, anise, thyme. Among known drugs recommended: “Prospan”, “Doctor MOM”, “Gedelix”, “Bronchicum” and “Dr” (we recommend reading:). Theiss." "Prospan" and "Bronchicum" are allowed from 4-6 months. A one-month-old baby may be allergic to herbs, so you need to monitor the baby’s well-being. When skin rash or swelling, you should stop taking the medication and visit your pediatrician.

If a newborn sneezes and coughs, the dosage of the drug is calculated by the doctor (we recommend reading:). An overdose of an expectorant medicine is dangerous, since the cough of a one-month-old baby may be prolonged. The volume of mucus secreted will increase, but a baby between the ages of one month and one year physically cannot cough it up.

It is prohibited to combine antitussive and expectorant medications, as the manufacturers warn about in the instructions. When a cough is suppressed and a large volume of mucus is produced at the same time, pneumonia occurs.

First aid for a baby

Before the doctor arrives, parents can follow simple tips to alleviate the baby’s condition. At home, it is difficult to determine why a baby is coughing and sneezing, but you can help reduce negative symptoms:

1. Drink plenty of fluids. If a newborn is coughing, then only water is allowed to drink. At natural feeding it is necessary to offer the breast more often. Don't forget that heat leads to dehydration. Danger signal Don't miss it if you watch the diaper filling. If you urinate infrequently (once every 4 hours), you need to start drinking water from your little one. Babies from six months of age are offered raisin water, a decoction of rose hips or linden, diluted juice or dried fruit uzvar.
2. Minimum clothing. The warmer the baby is dressed, the faster he loses moisture. The mucous membranes dry out, so the baby begins to cough.
3. Walks in the open air. If the child has a cough, but other health indicators are normal, short walks are allowed. The exceptions are weather when there is severe frost outside. Don’t be alarmed if your baby only coughed during the day, but in the evening after a walk the cough intensified. This leads to better mucus removal.
4. Comfortable air humidity. To dry painful cough turned into wet, it is not necessary to resort to medications. It is enough to set the air humidity in the house at 50-70%. The temperature in the room where the baby is located should not rise above 22 C. 18 C is considered ideal, otherwise the sputum in the respiratory tract will be more viscous and thick.
5. Safe inhalations. Steam treatments Do not do this to avoid burns to the skin and mucous membranes. If the baby coughs, it is recommended to install it next to the playpen during the illness. Doctors advise filling a bathtub for a dry cough. hot water by adding soda to it. Then take the baby in your arms and sit in the bathroom, inhaling the moist alkaline fumes.

Additional measures: do's and don'ts

Moist cough at one-year-old children often accompanied by difficult-to-remove mucus. IN in this case Drainage massage will help. You can invite a specialist to your home who does professional massage babies, but the mother can carry out some manipulations on her own:

• lay the baby on his back;
• on chest put your palms and stroke it from bottom to top;
• turn the baby over on his stomach;
• “walk” along the back with gentle circular movements, avoiding the spine area.

The massage should be completed with light pats from bottom to top. It is advisable to position the baby so that the head is below the buttocks.

Fearing negative consequences from taking medications, mothers, on the advice of grandmothers, resort to using traditional medicine. Pediatricians are categorically against such experiments on children’s bodies:

1. Thoughtless manipulations almost always lead to the opposite effect. Compresses with dry mustard, vinegar or vodka cause burns and poisoning. Dangerous spasms of the bronchi and larynx often occur.
2. Babies in the first year of life develop allergies to medicinal herbs, That's why breast training, infusions and decoctions should be used after consultation with a specialist.

We must not forget that the time of shortages has long passed, and medicine does not stand still. The pharmaceutical industry can offer a lot of effective and safe drugs.

Expert opinion

Evgeniy Olegovich Komarovsky does not see anything terrible in the cough reflex, since it is inherent in all people. The resulting snot flows down the nasopharynx in children, so the body is forced to get rid of mucus. In the event of diseases of the upper respiratory tract or lungs, the volume of sputum increases, it is removed through a natural reflex.

If the snot in the nose dries out, it becomes difficult to breathe, leading to further complications. Komarovsky believes that preventing mucus from drying out in the bronchi is also important if the little one coughs. It is necessary to provide the baby with enough fluids and provide access to fresh, cool air. Without consulting a doctor, it is prohibited to use antitussive drugs, which are effective only for whooping cough. It is permissible to use mucolytic and expectorant drugs if it is evening outside and you need to act somehow.

Symptoms of any type of cough allow you to visit a pediatrician and get necessary recommendations. Effective and relatively safe the following drugs:

• lazolvan;
• acetylcysteine;
• bromhexine;
• potassium iodide;
• mucaltin;
• ammonia-anise drops.

They should be in home medicine cabinet, but the dosage is determined by the doctor. The specialist will also advise on the advisability of using a particular medicine.

The danger of complications after ARVI is the development acute bronchitis or pneumonia, secondary bacterial infections are not uncommon. The baby is prescribed antibiotics in tandem with additional medicines. Similar treatment will negatively affect the formation immune system, but there is no other way out. For this reason, Komarovsky recommends not to self-medicate, contact specialists in a timely manner and not expose the baby to danger. If a child experiences pneumonia before the age of 2 months, the alveoli of the lung remain affected and stop developing.

A cough, both dry and wet, may indicate a leak in the child’s body. huge amount various diseases. In some situations, this symptom persists for several days, but in most cases it becomes protracted and can be very difficult to get rid of.

Moreover, if the baby’s body temperature rises additionally, every mother rightly suspects colds and takes measures to prevent the development of complications after such ailments. If the baby’s temperature remains within normal values, and the coughing does not stop, parents begin to worry and do not know what to do.

In this article we will tell you what diseases may cause a child to have a dry cough without fever, and what treatment can be prescribed in different situations.

Causes of dry cough without fever in children

This unpleasant symptom occurs in boys and girls in at different ages may be caused by the following reasons:

1. In some cases, it is with a slight cough without an increase in body temperature that various acute respiratory diseases begin. Often these symptoms are also accompanied by a sore throat, which forces the child to try to cough. Subsequently, they may be joined by a runny nose, in which case the nature of the cough may change.
2. A rare dry cough in a child without fever throughout the day may indicate
3. Very often the cause of this phenomenon is an allergy. Moreover, contrary to generally accepted opinion, coughing in most cases bothers the baby not only during contact with the allergen, but also much later, when no other allergy symptoms appear. Under such circumstances, diagnosing the disease can be difficult, and even doctors for some time do not understand what exactly is happening to the child. IN severe cases allergies take the form of an illness such as bronchial asthma, which can bother the baby throughout his life.
4. After suffering from whooping cough, a child often continues to have a dry paroxysmal cough without fever, which occurs mainly at night. With this disease in nervous system crumbs, a “focus of excitation” is formed, which can provoke this unpleasant symptom for a long time.
5. Also, the cause of a dry cough in a baby at normal body temperature can be contact with volatile substances that irritate the mucous membrane of the upper respiratory tract. In a similar way, it can manifest itself if it enters the respiratory system.
6. Finally, a frequent dry cough in a child without fever, more like coughing, can occur in a room with excessively low air humidity. In this case, the cause of cough is drying out of the mucous membranes.

Of course, if your child has a dry cough without fever, especially if it lasts for a long time, you should see a doctor. To get rid of this unpleasant symptom may be applied medications, which suppress the cough reflex, but in the treatment of children they are used extremely rarely and only as prescribed by a doctor.

In addition, if the cause of a dry cough is bronchial asthma, your child may need medications that affect the lumen of the bronchi. Such drugs act throughout the body and have a lot of contraindications and side effects, therefore, they are also strictly not recommended to be used without prior consultation with a pediatrician.

To alleviate the baby’s condition and speed up his recovery, you need to provide him drinking plenty of fluids, as well as the optimal level of air humidity in the children's room. All other techniques and procedures can only be performed under the guidance of a doctor.

A cough is one of the most common symptoms of respiratory diseases in childhood. Concomitant symptoms such as fever and runny nose indicate the likelihood of developing acute respiratory disease.

Not everything is so simple in a situation where a cough develops without fever. Incorrect actions by parents, dictated by the desire to help the baby, can aggravate his condition. You need to know that coughing can be a normal reaction of the body to external factors, but may also indicate the development of a serious illness.

Possible reasons

Various diseases shape the specific nature of cough in children. Parents need to pay attention to the strength, timbre, duration, time of onset and intensification of the symptom, the amount of discharge, color, and consistency of sputum. This will speed up the production accurate diagnosis to start treatment.

Main reasons:

• . They can occur with or without temperature. In the case of a viral pathogen, there is also a sore throat, general weakness. Making a diagnosis is not difficult.
• Spicy and chronic diseases upper and lower respiratory tract( , ). They usually begin in a child with no fever, especially strong at night. Over time he acquires wet character. May persist for up to several weeks.
• Allergies. A child’s body reaction in the form of an attack of severe dryness, without fever, often at night, can be triggered by any allergens. For example, pollen, household dust, medicine, animal hair or food product.
• . Chronic attacks inflammatory pathology respiratory tract are caused by exposure to allergens, infections, cold air, physical activity, psycho-emotional stress.

Typical manifestations of asthma in children - continuous wheezing, feelings of suffocation, chest compression. In some children, the only symptom observed is a recurring, prolonged, paroxysmal dry cough without fever.

A child's cough can have many causes. It is important to take action in time urgent measures help.

Necessary urgently call an ambulance if, along with a cough, the following symptoms are present:

• Very hard breath, difficulty speaking or crying (in the case of infants);
• blue lips;
• loss of consciousness.

In case of absence severe symptoms, but if a child has a persistent cough without fever for several days, you should consult a doctor.

Prescribed groups of drugs

The doctor decides how to treat cough without fever in children after establishing the etiology of the disease. He prescribes medications that relieve or eliminate the main symptom. When choosing medications, the doctor is guided by such facts as type, strength, duration, condition and age of the baby.

For treatment use:

• Antitussive drugs.

  Their action is based on suppressing the cough reflex, so they are used exclusively to eliminate dry cough. Centrally acting drugs are used in cases obsessive symptom, for example, with whooping cough.

  Peripheral drugs dull the sensitivity of respiratory tract receptors, producing a local anesthetic effect.
  

• Expectorant drugs.

  Their main purpose is to liquefy mucus to facilitate its removal. Used in the presence of liquid, easily separated sputum.
  

• Mucolytic drugs.

  Affects phlegm. They are used for the accumulation of thick, viscous, difficult to cough up mucus in the respiratory tract.

  Cough medications are available in various forms, identical in digestibility and effectiveness. Choice dosage form for children is determined by ease of use.

Children are reluctant to take pills, and capsules and lozenges can be dangerous for them, so they are recommended for children over 6 years of age. Preparations in the form of syrups and powders for dissolution contain harmless flavoring additives, which makes them much easier to take.

After the first dose of the drug, parents need to pay attention to whether an allergic reaction has occurred.

Review of drugs for treatment

Treatment of cough in children has its own specific features and requires medical supervision. Pediatricians, not without reason, adhere to the principle that suppress children's cough do not do it. Its inhibition can contribute to the accumulation of sputum, that is, the creation favorable environment for bacteria to multiply and infection to progress. That is why in pediatric practice, expectorants are mainly used to help remove sputum.

When treating children prefer drugs plant origin , but provided there are no allergies.

• "" - syrup and drops based on ivy leaf extract. It has an expectorant, mucolytic, antispasmodic effect. Recommended dosage is 3 times a day for at least a week, undiluted. Contraindications - children under 2 years of age, diabetes, predisposition to laryngospasm. average price– 350-550 rub.
• « Bronchicum" - elixir and drops based on extracts of grindelia, primrose, quebracho, thyme. Recommended doses of the elixir are 0.5-1 teaspoon, drops – 15-20 drops for sugar or with hot tea. Contraindicated in children with allergic diseases respiratory tract. Approximate price– 400-450 rubles.

In the absence of a therapeutic effect, after 4-5 days they proceed to treatment with agents that dilute and enhance sputum separation.

• « Ambroxol"("", "") - tablets, syrup, drops, solution for inhalation. It is used in children of all ages, including newborns. It is recommended to dilute the syrup with water and not take it for more than 5-6 days. Contraindications – hypersensitivity to the ingredients of the drug. The average price is 150-300 rubles.

For more tips on treating a prolonged cough without fever in a child, watch Dr. Komarovsky’s video:

Folk remedies and herbal remedies approved by doctors

Can be used herbal teas with expectorant and anti-inflammatory effects. Fees usually include marshmallow, licorice, wild rosemary, chamomile, plantain, coltsfoot, pine buds.

Children under 1 year of age should brew only one plant. Children under 3 years old are given 1 tablespoon of decoction 4 times a day. For older children, the dose is increased 2-3 times.

Brings significant relief inhalation with soda, boiled potatoes, herbal extracts. The most accessible way is to add a tablespoon of soda to a bowl of hot water and let the baby breathe over it for about 15 minutes, covering his head with a towel.

Rubbing and massage of the chest with animal fats, honey and pharmaceutical ointments stimulates the functioning of the bronchi and lungs, increases blood circulation and mucus outflow. It is important to cover the baby with a blanket after rubbing to preserve thermal effect. Same therapeutic effect give warm cakes made of flour, potatoes and honey, applied to the chest for 2 hours.

This is the most common problem with which people consult a pediatrician. Coughing can be a real pain for a child. It is not surprising that the appearance of this symptom greatly worries parents. And, of course, every parent needs to know the most common causes of cough and available methods fight him.

Types of cough

Coughing is a defensive reaction. In this way, the body tries to clear away accumulated mucus. Cough has different characteristics.

First of all, cough types are distinguished by duration:

• Spicy(duration less than three weeks);
• Protracted(from three weeks to three months);
• Chronic(more than three months).

By nature, a cough is distinguished between dry and wet, and by timbre - barking, hoarse, muffled, silent, ringing. It is equally important to take into account what time of day the cough occurs: at night, in the morning or throughout the day.

Cough is a symptom of the most various diseases: from infectious to non-inflammatory. To overcome a cough, first of all, you need to identify the cause of its occurrence, and then eliminate it.

Dry cough in a child

Dry cough - dull, painful, without sputum discharge. Usually observed in children during the first days when acute or. The child coughs during the day, and sometimes wakes up at night and tries to clear his throat. Symptoms such as weakness in the baby, decreased activity, increased temperature, chills, and sore throat speak in favor of ARVI.

A dry cough is typical for, it can worsen when the child comes into contact with allergens. Periodically, attacks of suffocation occur, during which the child becomes unable to take a full breath, which leads to a lack of air and a feeling of suffocation. After an attack, a small volume of fairly viscous, glassy sputum is released. Treatment of bronchial asthma is carried out special groups drugs.

Moist cough

A wet cough occurs two to three days after the first signs of acute respiratory disease appear. A wet cough is characterized by a ringing sound and expectoration of sputum. Children themselves feel relief when the cough turns from dry to wet. However, if the sputum is viscous, it may be difficult to clear, and to solve this problem you need to take mucolytic drugs

In general, if, during treatment for an infectious disease of the respiratory tract, the cough turns from dry to wet, this can be considered a favorable sign.

Cough in a child without fever

If a child has a cough, runny nose and high temperature, parents will immediately think about it. But if a child coughs periodically, but is active and the temperature is not elevated, this already confuses the parents. In children, a prolonged cough without fever may be a consequence of ARVI. In this case, cough is the result hypersensitivity cough receptors, as well as increased sputum production after infection. This cough is not a sign of illness and does not require treatment. active therapy. However, if the child becomes more passive and the temperature rises, then it is still worth seeing a doctor.

If a child suddenly starts coughing, the first thing to think about is the airway. This often occurs when a child inhales during play. small parts toys. If a foreign body blocks the airway, an attack of suffocation may occur when the child is unable to inhale air and tries to take convulsive breaths. The skin of the face may take on a bluish color. Such situations cannot be delayed. The child must be placed on his stomach, bent over his knee, and tapped on the back with the palm of his hand so that the foreign body can come out.

In addition, a cough without fever is characteristic of bronchial asthma, the symptoms of which are described above.

Cough at night

The cause of night cough may not be respiratory diseases at all. Thus, coughing at night often occurs in children with sinusitis (inflammation paranasal sinuses nose). With sinusitis, hypersecretion of mucus occurs, which accumulates in the inflamed sinus. When does a child accept horizontal position, mucus flows from the sinus and flows down back wall nasopharynx, which causes reflex reaction in the form of a cough.

Night cough is also observed with such a common disease as inflammation nasopharyngeal tonsil. When the child takes a horizontal position, the enlarged tonsil irritates the walls of the pharynx, which causes a cough. Also significant role Coughing is caused by the flow of mucus down the throat and drying of the mucous membrane of the pharynx, due to the fact that the child breathes through the mouth and not through the nose. Another manifestation of adenoiditis is the appearance of snoring in a child.

Even organ pathology digestive tract may cause night cough. Thus, with gastroesophageal reflux, gastric contents are thrown into the esophagus, as well as flow into the throat, which is why a cough occurs.

Cough at night is characteristic of whooping cough. At the beginning of the disease, the child’s temperature rises, he becomes lethargic and tearful, and there is a runny nose and a dry, unproductive cough. But at this stage it is difficult to distinguish it from other acute respiratory diseases.

Approximately by the third week of the disease, the cough becomes more pronounced and becomes paroxysmal. Thus, coughing attacks occur not only during the day, but often at night. The child coughs and wakes up in the middle of the night. During a cough, several exhalations quickly follow each other, followed by a convulsive whistling inhalation. This symptom is called reprise. During an attack, the child's face turns purple. At the end of the cough, viscous transparent sputum is released from the respiratory tract, and often vomiting.

Night cough is also typical for children with bronchial asthma. Often it occurs immediately closer to the morning. It is possible that such a cough is allergic reaction on dust mites contained in the feather pillow. For some children, this may not be a normal cough, but even the equivalent of an asthma attack.

Barking cough in a child

A dry, barking cough is a symptom of an infectious-inflammatory process in the throat. Laryngitis usually develops with ARVI. But with the flu or you should be wary of complications of laryngitis -. This condition is caused by swelling of the larynx, which leads to a narrowing of the lumen of the larynx, making it difficult for air to pass through the airways.

For false croup A triad of signs is typical:

1. Barking cough;
2. Hoarseness of voice;
3. Stenotic (noisy) breathing.

Development is evidenced by an increase in dry, barking cough. The child becomes excited and restless. Soon shortness of breath appears, the child’s breathing becomes noisy and difficult. At first, shortness of breath is observed when the baby is crying or moving, but as the disease progresses, it can also occur at rest. Due to insufficient oxygen supply, the skin may become blue. Therefore, if you have symptoms of croup, you should definitely consult a doctor.

Treatment of cough in a child

As already mentioned, coughing is a protective reaction of the body. The goal in treating cough is not to suppress, but rather to change its characteristics. Suppressing a cough in cases where the body is trying to cope with an infection and remove phlegm from the respiratory tract is impractical. On the contrary, you need to help the body clear the airways.

Antibiotics

It's wide famous group drugs, which is well known to every parent. It’s worth making a note right away: a cough in itself, no matter what it is, is not a reason to prescribe antibiotics. These medications are prescribed only when laboratory tests can confirm the bacterial nature of the disease (sinusitis, pneumonia).

By the way, bronchitis in most cases has viral nature, so the purpose antibacterial drugs in this case it makes no sense. What can we say about pharyngitis, laryngitis and tracheitis, which often occur against the background of acute respiratory viral infection. Therefore, you should approach the prescribing of antibiotics responsibly, and even more so, in no case should you choose a medicine yourself without your attending physician.

But if the doctor prescribed an antibiotic, then you need to take it for as long as prescribed (usually at least five days). And even more so, you should not stop taking an antibiotic because the child begins to feel better and cough less.

Antitussives

Due to insufficient understanding of the cough mechanism, parents buy antitussive medications for their children, as well as advertised combination medications containing an antitussive component. The essence of this group of drugs is that they suppress cough. That is, the child coughs less, but not because he is recovering, but because the cough reflex is suppressed. And this condition can be quite dangerous, because mucus and microorganisms remain in the respiratory tract and do not come out. The indication for the use of these drugs is the persistent need to suppress cough.

Thus, the use of antitussive drugs may be justified, for example, for whooping cough in the case of a dry, debilitating cough accompanied by vomiting or for pleurisy in the case of a strong, painful cough.

Mucolytics

This is a group of drugs that helps thin sputum. They are used mainly for coughs with thick and difficult to separate sputum. If a child has a wet, productive and profuse cough, then they do not resort to the use of mucolytics. Mucolytics are prescribed to treat cough caused by infectious diseases lower sections respiratory tract (tracheitis, bronchitis, pneumonia). The following drugs from this group are used in pediatric practice:

• Bromhexine;
• Fluimucil;
• Ambroxol.

Note: joint use antitussive and mucolytic drugs are contraindicated.

Expectorants

This is a group of drugs that facilitates the separation of sputum when coughing by diluting it and increasing the activity of the ciliated epithelium of the respiratory tract. Taking expectorants leads to an increase in the volume of sputum, while mucolytics do not significantly increase its volume.

Do not be alarmed if, after taking expectorants, your child’s cough intensifies and phlegm comes out into the mouth. more. This is the mechanism of action of these medications, this is how they clear the airways of stagnant mucus.

The disadvantages of this group of drugs include the need frequent use(every three to four hours), which certainly tires the child. Expectorants are mainly represented by herbal medicines:

• Gedelix;
• Dr. MOM;
• Liquorice root;
• Marshmallow root;
• Pertusin;
• Potassium iodide.

Folk cough remedies for children

Cough has been a problem for humans at all times. Our ancestors invented and used all kinds of folk recipes, many of which have survived to this day.

Here is one of them: you need to boil half a liter of milk. When the milk boils, you need to remove it from the stove and add just a tablespoon pine buds. Leave the milk to sit for an hour. After the specified time has passed, you can begin to use the decoction. You need to drink half a liter of the resulting infusion throughout the day, giving the child as much as he can drink at one time.

Calamus root is known for its properties to thin phlegm and promote more effective coughing, thanks to which medicines are prepared from this plant. But you can prepare the product yourself. To do this, you need to add calamus roots into boiling water, at the rate of one tablespoon of the plant per two hundred milliliters of water. The product needs to be boiled for ten to fifteen minutes. When the broth has cooled, strain it and give the child half a glass half an hour before meals. It is recommended to drink up to half a liter of this infusion per day.

Radish is successfully used in the fight against cough; many parents probably remember this recipe from their childhood. Take a large, washed root vegetable and cut off the top. Cut a hollow inside the fruit, into which then place a tablespoon of honey. This radish should be covered with the cut top and left for ten to twelve hours. After the specified time, when the honey is mixed with radish juice, the product is ready for use. The syrup should be given to the child three times a day (preferably half an hour before meals) in a teaspoon. The existing depression in the radish can be filled with honey. And after three days you will have to take a new root crop.

Note:for acute infectious processes thermal procedures are contraindicated, this also applies to holding the legs hot water and steam inhalations. The latter, in the presence of swelling of the mucous membranes (which is usually observed with ARVI), will only aggravate both the swelling and general state child. Therefore, you need to be careful with both medicines and traditional medicine methods.

Grigorova Valeria, medical observer

The appearance of a cough in a child causes concern for many parents, but this symptom does not always indicate a disease, especially if elevated temperature and there are no other signs of illness. However, there are diseases that manifest themselves as a long-term cough, so parents should know what diseases can cause a cough and how to treat it correctly.

When is a cough normal?

Cough protects the respiratory system from all harmful and excess substances that can enter the lungs.

This reflex frees the mucous membrane from viruses, allergens, dust, bacteria and various harmful compounds. This is why periodic coughing up to 10-15 times a day is normal. And if the parents do not note any other negative symptoms, there is no need to run to the doctor or buy cough medicine.

In infancy, coughing can serve as a protective reaction against tears or milk entering the respiratory tract (a newborn may cry or choke on milk, and coughing acts as a protective reflex). If your baby is teething, excess saliva can also enter the respiratory tract and cause a cough.

Reason frequent cough in children, which is easy for parents to eliminate, is excessively dry air in the room. Sudden Appearance a coughing attack may be associated with exposure to foreign body into the respiratory tract, for example, if crumbs get into the child’s trachea while eating.

Cough in children may occur due to various reasons, so first check the child’s airways or consult a doctor

Causes: cough as a symptom of illness

• Allergy. The child may react by coughing to house dust, different products nutrition, household chemicals, pollen, fluff in the pillow and other allergens.
• Bronchial asthma. The disease manifests itself as paroxysmal coughing, which often occurs at night.
• Infectious lesions of the bronchi or upper respiratory tract. If the causative agent is a fungus, cytomegalovirus or chlamydia, there may be no increase in temperature. Parawhooping cough or tuberculosis can also manifest as coughing attacks without fever.
• Residual cough after past diseases respiratory system, for example, after acute bronchitis. The baby may cough for several weeks after the end of the acute phase of the disease.

Cough and runny nose

The appearance of a cough and runny nose without a rise in temperature often indicates an exacerbation of chronic rhinitis, for example, after hypothermia. In the case of such rhinitis, snot flowing down the back of the throat causes a wet cough. In such a situation, it is important to direct treatment to eliminate the runny nose, for example, rinse the nose with Aquamaris and instill drugs that constrict blood vessels.

A wet cough is often caused by a runny nose, so it should be eliminated first.

How to treat?

Treatment of cough without fever should be comprehensive and aimed at the cause of the disease, since cough is only one of the symptoms. Children undergo various procedures, are treated with folk remedies, as well as medications prescribed by the pediatrician. Let's consider all treatment methods in more detail.

Medicines

Among the medications prescribed by a doctor for coughs without elevated body temperature, the following groups of drugs are distinguished:

• Antitussives. Medicines This group affects the cough center in the child’s brain, so their use is justified for painful dry coughs. Children can be prescribed Sinecode, Paxedalin, Omnitus, Libexin, Codelac.
• Antihistamines. Such medications are prescribed to children with allergic cough no fever. These include Fenistil, Erius, Cetrin, Zodak, Zirtek, Suprastin.
• Expectorants. They are prescribed when sputum appears to improve its separation. The most popular products in children are in the form of syrups, for example, Gedelix, Marshmallow Syrup, Bronchicum, Licorice Root Syrup, Doctor Theiss, Prospan, Herbion and others.
• Mucolytics. Such drugs affect viscous sputum, as a result of which it becomes more liquid and makes it easier to cough up. These include Ambrobene, Bromhexine, Flavamed, Bronchipret, ACC, Fluditec and other drugs.
• Antibiotics. Medicines of this group are indicated in the case of bacterial infection, which can only manifest itself as a cough without fever. Selection the right drug and its dosage is carried out by a pediatrician.

Procedures

• If you have a dry cough with normal body temperature, you can steam inhalations. During such procedures, the child breathes over a pan of boiling liquid, for example, herbal decoction, or through a steam inhaler.
• Inhalation using a nebulizer will help you cope with coughs of any kind. This is the name given to a special device that can transform liquid medicines into small particles and deliver them to the respiratory tract. Without consulting a doctor, you can pour saline or Borjomi into the nebulizer. If the procedure was prescribed by a pediatrician, nebulizer inhalations can be performed with Lazolvan, Rotokan, Tussamag, Miramistin, Furacilin and other medications.
• When coughing in the background normal temperature body, warming procedures are allowed, for example, rubbing the child’s feet with warming ointments or warm foot baths.
• If your cough is wet, it will help improve sputum production. special massage which is called drainage. Its peculiarity is the position of the child’s body - while the mother massages the back and chest, the baby’s head should be lower than the body.

Inhalations will help thin mucus, making the cough more productive.

Drainage massage promotes better removal of sputum when coughing

Folk remedies

Before using herbs to treat a cough in a child, it is better to consult a specialist.

Features of treatment of infants

If mom suspects that she has a cough infant may be a symptom of some disease (it does not go away long time and worries the baby), the baby should be shown to a pediatrician.

No cough medicine should be given to infants without consulting a doctor. A pediatrician can prescribe medications approved for children up to one year of age, such as Prospan, Gedelix, Herbion ivy, Linkas, Licorice root syrup and others.

Do not self-medicate infants; at this age, only a doctor should prescribe medications

What does a frequent, prolonged cough without fever in a child indicate?

Constant cough without other symptoms of illness for several weeks should be a reason to additional examination child.

Most probable reasons Such coughs are represented by an allergic reaction or too dry air in the room, so you need to take care of humidifying the air and go with your child to an allergist. Besides, persistent cough sometimes caused psychological factors, which requires contacting a psychologist.

Komarovsky's opinion

Popular pediatrician calls cough important protective symptom helping to eliminate excess mucus, bacteria from the respiratory tract, foreign objects or viruses. When treating a cough, Komarovsky advises focusing on thinning mucus by humidifying the air and drinking plenty of fluids.

A well-known doctor claims that ventilation, frequent wet cleaning, warm drink V large quantities and air humidification help to cope with cough along with expectorants. Give any medications Komarovsky recommends only after consulting a doctor, since treatment should be aimed at the cause of the cough, and not at eliminating the symptom itself.

Some advice from the doctor in the video below.

• The diet of a child with a cough should be adjusted so that the baby does not eat food that is either too cold or too cold. hot food. Prepare nutritious but light meals for your child. Focus on drinking more, giving your daughter or son compote, tea, milk, herbal decoction, fruit juice and other liquids.
• Ventilate the room in which the baby is located more often, and also humidify the air in it (preferably using a humidifier, but you can also use a damp cloth or containers filled with water). A cough should not become an obstacle to walking, because Fresh air helps relieve it and speed up recovery.
• If your child suddenly develops a fever, nausea and vomiting, a bluish tint to the skin, difficulty breathing or swallowing, or any other warning symptoms, do not hesitate to contact a doctor. You should not postpone a visit to the pediatrician if your cough is whistling or hoarse.

Create everything for your child the necessary conditions to relieve cough