Cough treatment in children must be given close attention, because it is a very disturbing and unpleasant symptom. If a cough develops due to the defeat of the child's body by a bacterial or viral infection, then this may threaten the spread of the disease to the nearest tissues, passing into the chronic stage. Especially if you do not start treatment on time. Before any cough can be treated, the cause must be established.
Principles of treatment
To begin with, let's define the principles of treating cough in children. By itself, coughing is considered perhaps the most popular human protective reflex. Its function is to effectively clean the respiratory tract from all kinds of irritants. These can be foreign bodies, allergens, sputum, mucus, bacteria and viruses.
Of particular concern should be a dry cough that does not lead to the formationsputum. This is due to the fact that it is not there or its consistency is too thick. Unlike a wet cough, which, as a rule, signals that the disease has subsided, a dry one becomes very painful for the child, interferes with normal sleep, and does not bring relief. Very young children may experience irritation, cracks, and bleeding sores.
As a rule, the cause of cough in children is associated with SARS or a cold, and to be more precise, with inflammatory processes that occur against their background in the respiratory tract. For example, bronchitis or pharyngitis. With the latter, irritation begins in the mucous membrane of the throat, perspiration and sore pain appear. During bronchitis, the cough is loud and chesty.
It is better not to treat cough in children on your own, but immediately consult a specialist. It is especially important to do this if there are suspicions that the cough is not associated with an acute respiratory disease, but with some other cause. It is worth worrying if the cough is not accompanied by a runny nose, sore throat and other characteristic clinical signs of a cold.
If it's all about acute respiratory infections, the cause of coughing in children has been established, then the most important thing you can do is relieve inflammation in the throat, create conditions that will prevent the spread of the inflammatory process through the respiratory tract. If this has already happened, bronchitis has begun, the cough has turned from dry to wet, then you need to effectively clear the airways of sputum and mucus, which can begin to accumulate there.
If the child does not pass for a long timecough, you need to go to the clinic. At the same time, sometimes a child's cough can manifest itself only in the first half of the day and not be a sign of any serious illness. In most cases, then it is associated with the wrong temperature and humidity level in the room in which he sleeps. You can fix this yourself - regularly ventilate the room and install a humidifier.
Baby care
It must be remembered that in addition to medicines, it is also necessary to organize proper care for a child who suffers from a cough. To do this, it must be provided:
- plentiful warm drink (it can be compotes, herbal teas, non-carbonated mineral waters, fruit drinks);
- ventilate the room often and be sure to carry out wet cleaning;
- humidity in the apartment should be at least 50%;
- in the room where the baby sleeps, the temperature should not rise above 20 degrees.
It is the proper care of a sick child that plays an important role in the treatment of cough. This is important for the smallest, for whom most strong drugs can pose a threat, contribute to the development of serious complications, the occurrence of side effects.
Among foreign pediatricians, there is an opinion that drinking plenty of water when coughing is even more mandatory than taking all kinds of mucolytic drugs. But more secure.
Medicines for the little ones
When the treatment of cough in children still needs to be accompanied by taking various drugs, then you need to know how they work, what they can affect. It depends on which medicines to use.
The doctor should decide what to give the child for coughing based on the examination of the patient, examination of the throat, chest and general clinical tests. So it will be possible to determine the cause of the disease. The doctor may prescribe several types of drugs:
- topical preparations that will contribute to the victory over sore throat;
- mucolytics;
- antitussives;
- expectorants.
Also, antispasmodics, sedatives, antibiotics and antihistamines can be included in complex treatment. All at the discretion of the doctor.
Babies are the hardest to deal with. There are not many cough medicines for children under one year old that they could be prescribed without any consequences. This is also due to the weak respiratory muscles of the child, an undeveloped cough reflex, when the baby has not yet learned to cough.
Due to the abundant sputum that forms in the respiratory tract, a serious danger can arise for the baby. This happens with the regular use of expectorants, mucolytics. Coughing in this case can cause the child to choke on the resulting mucus.
Throat medicines
When the doctor determines that the cause of the cough wasdamage to the throat mucosa, then applies local cough therapy to children under one year old. These drugs are able to have softening, healing, anti-inflammatory and antiseptic effects.
How to cure a cough in a child depends largely on his age. Depending on this, the doctor may prescribe herbal decoctions, sprays, rinses, lozenges with extracts of useful medicinal herbs, lozenges.
Drugs used for sore throat can be combined in one table. Here is the information about their dosage.
| Medication name | At what age to take | At what dosage (per day) |
| "Lyzobact" tablets | from three to seven years old | 1 tablet 3 times |
| from seven to 12 years old | 1 tablet 4 times | |
| from 12 years old | 2 tablets 3-4 times each | |
| Spray "Ingalipt" | from three years old | 2-3 sprays 3-4 times each |
| "Tantum Verde" | from the age of six | 1 tablet every 3 hours |
| Lollipops "Strepsils" | from the age of six | 1 lollipop every 3 hours |
| Pills "Septefril" | from the age of five | 1 tablet 3-4 times |
| Septolete lozenges | from the age of four | 1 lozenge no more than 4 times |
| from 12 years old | 1 lozenge no more often8 times | |
| Spray "Gexoral" | from three years old | 1 spray 2 times each |
| "Pharingosept" | from three years old | 1 tablet 3 times |
Cough Help
If a child's cough persists, the doctor may prescribe antitussives. These are quite strong drugs, so it is not recommended to take them on your own. They are prescribed if the cough is very strong, accompanied by pain, interferes with sleep. They work like this: they suppress a cough in a child, affecting the cough center, thus reducing irritation of inflamed mucous membranes, and reducing the susceptibility of cough receptors in the periphery. In parallel, they have a moderate expectorant effect, proto-inflammatory, bronchodilator, bronchodilator.
Against the background of taking them in a child with a dry cough, mucus stagnation may form, it is imperative to see a doctor, as coughing can sometimes provoke a more serious illness. You can't let it take its course.
The most effective drugs that are most often used for severe dry cough are collected in one table.
| Medication name | At what age to take | At what dosage (per day) |
| "Sinekod" (it can be in the form of a dragee, syrup or drops) | syrup, from three years old | 3 x 5ml |
| syrup, from six years old | 3times 10 ml | |
| syrup, from 12 years old | 3 x 15ml | |
| drops, from two months to three years | strictly acting on instructions | |
| Pills "Libexin" | from three years old | a quarter tablet 3-4 times |
| from the age of six | half a tablet 3-4 times | |
| from 12 years old | one tablet 3-4 times | |
| "Broncholithin" | from three years old | 5 ml 3 times |
| from 10 years old | 10 ml 3 times | |
| "Glauvent" | from the age of four | 10 mg 2-3 times |
Mucolitics
Powerful cough remedy for children - mucolytics. They are able to change the chemical composition and properties of sputum. Mucolytics contribute to the production of its liquid part.
Cough remedies for children, categorized as mucolytics, are listed in this article.
| Medication name | At what age to take | At what dosage (per day) |
| "Ambroxol" (in the pharmacy you can find all kinds of analogues in the form of tablets, syrup, solutions for inhalation) | syrup, up to two years | 2, 5 ml 2 times |
| syrup, two to five years | 2, 5 ml 3 times | |
| syrup, from five years old | five ml 2-3 times | |
| ACC and its analogues (they are produced in the form of effervescent tablets, syrup, granules) | syrup, two to 14 years old | five ml 2-3 times |
| syrup, from 14 years old | 10 ml 2-3 times | |
| "Bromhexine" (as syrup and tablets) | under six years old | 12mg |
| from six to 14 years old | 24mg | |
| over 14 | 24-48mg |
It is always worth remembering that prolonged use of cough mixtures for children can lead to overproduction of sputum. So mucolytics are discontinued as soon as the cough goes from dry to wet.
Expectorants
When a child has a dry cough for more than a day, doctors often prescribe syrups containing a large number of herbs. They are able to thin the accumulated sputum, speeding up its excretion due to the strong irritation of the cough center.
Expectorant preparations include plant extracts, which can have not only expectorant, but also anti-inflammatory properties, and some have a healing and decongestant effect.
For he alth with a dry cough in a child, they are relatively safe. The only exceptions are children suffering from allergies. The fact is that these cough mixtures for children can provoke dermatitis, urticaria, and some other allergic reactions that manifest themselves during the period of intensive treatment.
This table contains effective expectorant drugs, the effect of which has been tested by time. You will know exactly what to givecough for a child.
| Medication name | At what age to take | At what dosage (per day) |
| "Doctor MOM" | from three years old | half a teaspoon 3 times |
| from the age of six | up to a full teaspoon 3 times | |
| from 14 years old | one to two teaspoons 3 times | |
| "Gerbion" with plantain | from two to seven years old | one scoop 3 times |
| from seven to 14 years old | one to two scoops 3 times | |
| from 14 years old | two scoops 3-5 times | |
| "Bronchicum C" | from six months to a year | 2, 5 ml 2 times |
| one to two years | 2, 5 ml 3 times | |
| two to six years old | five ml 2 times | |
| from six to 12 years old | five ml 3 times | |
| "Gedelix" | 2 to 4 years | 2, 5 ml 3 times |
| Four to 10 years old | 2, 5 ml 4 times | |
| from 10 years old | five ml 3 times |
Additional effective remedies
Cough inhalations for children are used with an integrated approach to treatment. Such funds bring a positive therapeutic effect. When inhaling, it is necessary to inhale vapors or use a nebulizer. In the latter case, inhalations are made using a solution of drugs. It could be ACC"Sinupret", "Lazolvan", "Fluimucil", "Dekasan", "Ambrobene". Buffer soda and saline are also added.
This treatment method has several obvious advantages. The main one is that drugs go directly into the respiratory tract.
Steam inhalations using infusions of medicinal herbs (usually St. John's wort, sage, chamomile, coltsfoot, eucalyptus) help if the child does not have a cough, they also use all kinds of decoctions, mineral water, baking soda solutions.
During inhalation, the temperature of the solution itself should be no higher than 40 degrees. This will avoid wounds on the mucous membrane, as well as other damage.
Cough compress
Another effective remedy is a cough compress for a child. This method has practically no contraindications, it is effective for a variety of types of diseases.
Compresses come in many varieties - dry and wet, oil and alcohol based, cool and warm.
The final choice of ingredients is determined by the causes and nature of the cough, as well as the individual susceptibility of the child to various drugs.
The compress should consist of three layers - a piece of gauze, a bandage or cotton wool, a film or polyethylene, a towel, a scarf, a scarf or a blanket. The second layer is needed to cover the wet layer on top, and the last one is to warm the lower layers.
The mechanism of a cough compress for a child is based on warming certain parts of the body. Thus,there is an anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, bactericidal, antifungal effect on the patient's body as a whole. The sputum is liquefied, relief comes.
Compresses have proved their effectiveness in bronchitis, acute respiratory infections, tonsillitis, pharyngitis, pneumonia, laryngitis.
Be sure to remember the general rules, breaking which is strictly prohibited. Otherwise, the effect will not be healing, but completely opposite. It is better to put a compress closer to the night, just before bedtime.
The procedure is contraindicated if high temperature or pressure is suspected. You can do a compress only when these indicators are normal. In extreme cases, completely abandon it in favor of other methods of treatment.
Put a compress in the place that needs to be warmed. When coughing, the best option is the chest or back. It is forbidden to put a compress on the heart, it must be left free. Damage to the body, if any, should not be affected.
The most common are potato compresses, as well as vodka and honey. Compresses in most cases are forbidden for babies and the elderly.
To prepare one of the most effective compresses - honey, you need to evenly rub the patient's chest and back with honey. Lay a plastic bag on top, so a certain "greenhouse effect" is formed. You can replace polyethylene with parchment paper. The last layer is a blanket. The compress lasts for about 60 minutes.
After removing it, you need to thoroughly wash and lubricateareas on which a compress was applied with olive or sunflower oil. You can also use a skin softener. Now you know how to cure a cough in a child.
Folk remedies
In Russia, there are many folk recipes for coughs for children, many people use them. Their effectiveness has been proven for decades, so they too can be used, without forgetting the recommendations received from a doctor.
Folk remedies include compresses, which we have already mentioned in this article, massages, the use of tea infusions and medicinal herbs. It is believed that coltsfoot, marshmallow, licorice, wild rosemary, elecampane help to effectively fight dry cough.
Currant tea helps, especially when a cough is accompanied by SARS. Currants can be replaced with raspberries or honey. Another popular and frequently used folk remedy is hot milk with honey. This drink helps to get rid of not only a cough, but also a sore throat. It has an antiseptic effect, softens the cough and warms the patient. The child's body will be able to more effectively deal with pathogenic microflora. Just keep in mind that honey is a strong allergen, so it should be used with caution, especially in the case of young children.
Often prepare radish with cough honey for children. For this remedy you will need:
- medium black radish;
- two teaspoons of honey;
- very little sugar (if desired, you can not use it at all);
- vegetable knife;
- a small shallow dish.
BIn the process of preparing radish with cough honey for children, start by thoroughly washing the root crop in warm running water, removing the most noticeable dirt. Cut off the skin and cap. Take out the pulp of the radish with a tea spoon, chop the resulting mass.
Together with sugar and honey, put back into the root crop and leave to brew for two hours. As time passes, you will get a sweet and baby-friendly juice. This is a fairly effective and efficient remedy that many have successfully tested on themselves and their children.
