When to call the pedi for a cough?

Lauren has had a cough for days. Emma just started with it yesterday. It starts off as a dry cough and moves kind of deep and makes them gag. I have brought them in twice this year for a cough and it turned out to be nothing, so I hate to do it again and look like a hypochondriac. They have no other symptoms other than being super whiney :crazy: and more clingy than normal. I can tell they just don't feel that great, but no fevers, runny noses, or any other symptoms. I have been pushing fluids as well as running a humidifier at night. It has been waking them now and then, but they aren't up for long.

So when would you call for an appt.?

 

It sounds like you are doing everything right. I would call if they start acting weird or lethargic, if the coughing is causing them to have trouble breathing, or if they develop a fever or any symptoms of dehydration.

:hug: I hope they feel better soon!! :hug:

 

Michelle, when you brought them in did your ped say it was okay to give them anything for it, especially at bedtime? My kids just got over a similar sounding bug and my ped suggested I give them Benadryl and Delsym at bedtime to help them sleep through the night. He said there was nothing else they could really do for them, but with the meds and humidifier running at least they could get some rest which would help them kick it sooner. Which it did. I do know that a lot of ped's are not suggesting anything OTC anymore, so don't take my word for it, call your dr's office to see what they say :hug:

 

I'd call and talk to a nurse or doctor and let them decide if you should bring them in. :hug: I hope they feel better soon.

 

If they've had it longer than a week, and my OTC remedies aren't working, I take them in. If the cough is really heavy and croupy and has lasted a few days, I'll take them in.

My remedies, in order of what I do if the previous doesn't work: a drink of water, a dose of honey, a dose of benadryl, a glass of warm apple juice with honey, getting in a warm bathroom with the hot shower creating lots of steam. Stepping outside and breathing cold air. I am no fan of delsym. It's a 12 hr dose, and usually runs out after 3 or 4 hours for me, leaving me stuck. I prefer 4-6 hr benadryl which is more flexible.

My doc said that if DD started coughing at night after the meds had taken effect, to treat that as asthma and use her rescue inhaler. We've only had to use it once, and a coughing spell hasn't come up since then, but happy to have another potential solution. (I really thought we'd kicked all this when her tonsils and adenoids removed and ear tubes, but she turned up with an ear infection and brochitis last week.)

 

I just encountered this same question yesterday. My son has had a pretty bad cough since Saturday - and I didn't think that it was much, but it was getting worse and more bark-like. So I called to see at what point I should call/be more concerned. They said that because it was getting worse instead of better (going from a dry cough to a bark-like cough), then he should be seen to be sure that the throat and lungs are clear. So we all trecked into the ped's office late yesterday afternoon, and of course it was nothing but a virus. They did give a prescription cough/cold med (can't remember the name now however). When I gave it to him, he gagged so much that he threw it up. I didn't try to give him another dose because he was so upset about the whole thing. Well wouldn't you know that he hardly coughed at all last night. When he got up this morning he was coughing again, the thick wet cough. I had to leave him with a babysitter, so I didn't give him another dose. We will see how today goes with them. My other son had the dry cough and this morning was coughing with a more wet cough so we may be going through all of this with him as well. Fun times with 2 sick toddlers.

Thanks for posting some of those remedies. We had tried the dose of honey as well as the dose of benedryl and it didn't seem to help at all. He really didn't like the taste of those either. I will try the apple juice and honey idea. My MIL also suggested warm water with honey and lemon. I hadn't tried that either.

Neither of mine are eating much of anything - even their favorites. So we are doing what we can and pushing LOTS of fluids. Hope you get through this!!

 

Michelle, Well you know I just recently took both mine in for a cough. It was a loose cough and they were coughing all the time and waking up at night. I was also running a humidifier in each of their rooms as well as using Vick's on their chest. Turns out it was bronchitis and my ped says he has seen A LOT of that right now. I don't mess around with coughs if they are deep and loose. Caroline has mild persistant asthma and her coughs always go right to her chest. So I am more cautious with Emilie and Trevor. If she is still coughing tomorrow and it's deep/loose I'd probably take her in with the weekend coming up. Hope she feels better soon. :hug:

 

Im so glad I read this post. I was considering whether or not to post about my son... Im most definitely going to take him to the DR today when I get off work.

He has had a cough for about 5 days. . Thursday morning when he woke up he felt like he HAD to cough to get something out and after a couple times he 'broke up' whatever was in his chest. He hasnt been coughing too much, but he has had a cough, and ever since Thursday its been a loose/wet cough, that you can hear in his chest. Yesterday he was with my mom all day, and he didnt eat much. Last night I offered him several healthy snacks that he would normally eat without hesitation and I kept getting 'no thankyou'.. he finally ended up eating a pear for dinner. He also started running a fever. .101. I normally wouldnt give meds for that but he was just laying around and wouldnt do anything, and said he didnt feel good, so I gave some motrin at 7pm to help make sure he slept. He slept all night, and didnt have a fever at 6am when I got up to come to work today, but I called earlier and his father said he felt a little warm.
He's not a child who gets sick often at all. . and the way the cough sounds I was thinking last night, it might be an upper respiratory infection or something, and then I was thinking bronchitis or pnemonia.. I schedule medical appts for a living, and I've heard a lot of people calling for both of those things lately, so I want to get him checked asap.

Thanks for posting this topic!