COUGH

During the fall season we receive many calls regarding coughs.  Most coughs are caused by viral infections which affect the upper airways (a cold or upper respiratory infection) or the larger lower airway passages (tracheitis or bronchitis).  Coughing is necessary for the body to clear the mucous in these areas of the airway and can help prevent pneumonia (an infection in the lungs).

Coughs can last anywhere from a few days to a few weeks.  The home care is to drink a lot of fluids, rest and use humidified air.  In general, we do not recommend using cough suppressants during the day. The cough reflex helps protect the lungs; therefore it is not helpful to suppress it.  The reason to occasionally use cough suppressants is if the cough is interfering with sleep. The cough suppressant used for children is dextromethorphan (DM). 

Coughing is one of the ways in which disease is spread.  Therefore it is important to teach your children to cough into their sleeve as opposed to their hands.  They are far less likely to touch another person or object with their sleeves and it is not always possible to wash their hands immediately after coughing.

A common misconception is that milk should be eliminated from a child’s diet when there is a cough or congestion.  Unless your child is allergic to milk, this is not necessary and probably will not help. 

If your child has asthma, you should start his/her inhaler when the cough is beginning, as opposed to waiting till there is difficulty breathing or full blown wheezing.

If your child’s cough is persistent (longer than 2-3 weeks) or if there is wheezing, difficulty breathing or fever, you should call our office; we may need to examine him/her to check for asthma or pneumonia or bronchitis.



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