Today, antihistamines are actively used by pediatricians to treat allergy symptoms in adults and children. When coughing, "Suprastin" has a direct effect on the cough center and the peripheral nervous system. He is quite effective in dealing with such an unpleasant symptom.
Many are wondering if Suprastin can be used to treat young children. It turns out that this drug can be used to eliminate cough in babies from birth, but only according to strict indications, in a specific dosage and in a certain course. And under no circumstances should you deviate from a doctor's prescription.
Can this drug harm the child's body, and in what specific cases is it prescribed to infants? Let's look at the features of the medicine and find out how to use Suprastin when coughing in children.
A little description
"Suprastin" - antihistaminea drug that is recommended for the treatment of various manifestations of allergies and the prevention of its development during seasonal exacerbations. The peculiarity of this drug lies in its ability to act on the cough center and suppress H-receptors, as well as on the entire peripheral nervous system when coughing in children.
"Suprastin" helps relieve attacks of bronchial asthma, seasonal allergies to flowering and eliminate suffocation that occurs against the background of its severe complications. Of course, completely different dosages of the drug are used to treat adults and young children. You can get rid of allergic cough with the help of Suprastin tablets and injections.
In what cases is prescribed
Most often, the drug is recommended for children with allergic reactions of various nature, for example, due to some foods, insect bites, medication, urticaria, contact dermatitis, allergic rhinitis or conjunctivitis. In addition, "Suprastin" is used for the systemic treatment of angioedema and anaphylactic shock in babies.
In addition, the drug has an antiemetic effect, which makes it possible to use it for poisoning and coughing attacks, accompanied by nausea. This property is especially important for young patients who cannot control their urges.
When coughing in children, "Suprastin" is used to eliminate seizures provoked by various allergens,for example, animal hair, plant pollen, dust. Many pediatricians recommend this medicine as a complex treatment for a cold, which is accompanied by a strong unproductive cough that has a choking, debilitating character. Often the drug is used in combination with "No-shpa", as it helps to prevent the development of bronchospasm.
Features
No less effective "Suprastin" with a severe runny nose, when mucus moves along the back of the throat and thereby provokes the appearance of a dry, incessant cough. This condition can be caused not only by allergic, but also by viral factors.
But the drug is not prescribed for a wet productive cough during colds, flu and ARVI, since it does not have mucolytic properties, but only stops the manifestations of allergies.
Recommended dosage of "Suprastin" for coughing in children
The drug is produced in two forms: in the form of tablets and solution for injection. The peculiarity of the medicine is that it is allowed to be used to treat the smallest children. But there is no special form of release of the drug intended for babies, so pediatricians prescribe a drug with a concentration of the active substance of 25 mg in tablets to small patients. The dosage of "Suprastin" when coughing for children is selected according to age:
- From a month to a year, babies are given a quarter of a tablet, which is ground into powder and added to drink or food, the child needs to take medicine 2-3 times a day.
- From year to 2years old, children can be given a quarter of a tablet 3 times a day or a third twice a day - it all depends on the intensity of the cough.
- From 2 to 6 years. If the child is 2 years old, the dosage of "Suprastin" when coughing should not exceed twice the dose of half a tablet per day.
- At 6-14 years old, the child should be given half a tablet 2-3 times throughout the day, depending on the severity of the symptoms of the pathology.
- Teenagers over 14 can take one tablet 2-3 times a day.
Injections "Suprastin" are used extremely rarely, especially for the treatment of young children. Usually injections of the drug are made only in stationary conditions if emergency care is needed. Such a measure may be required for complicated manifestations of allergies.
Recommended solution dosage
The solution is a clear liquid with no specific odor. Its infusion should be very slow. When coughing in children, the dosage of "Suprastin" in the form of injections can be as follows:
- teens over 14 years of age can receive 1-2 ampoules per day, depending on the severity of the condition;
- at 6-14 years old, the dose should be 0.5-1 ampoule per day;
- from one to 6 years old, children can be given half an ampoule of medicine;
- Infants over two months of age should receive no more than a quarter of an ampoule.
Of course, the dosages given are notare universal, they only approximately describe the recommendations of doctors. The specific amount of medicine can only be determined by a doctor.
Contraindications and adverse reactions
It should be said right away that the occurrence of side effects in children while taking Suprastin is not uncommon. As adverse reactions in babies appear drowsiness, nausea, apathy, slight dizziness, loss of appetite.
Doctors warn parents about the existence of absolute contraindications for the use of the drug, in the presence of which it is impossible to give the baby a remedy under any circumstances. These include:
- glaucoma;
- acute asthma attacks;
- prostate enlargement.
With extreme caution, the drug is prescribed for children with:
- pathologies of the kidneys and liver;
- urinary retention;
- malformations of the cardiovascular system.
Application features
You can give the child "Suprastin" when coughing, starting with small dosages. If there are no side effects, it is allowed to gradually increase the volume of the drug. But in no case should you exceed the dosage prescribed by the doctor.
The course of treatment should not last more than a week. With a strong cough in a child, "Suprastin" is recommended to be given within 5 days. You can repeat the therapeutic course only after a month and only on the recommendation of a doctor.
Pillsshould be taken with food, not chewed. They should be washed down with a large amount of liquid, for example, pure still water, fruit juice, compote or fruit drink. Very young children should be given crushed tablets.
If the doctor prescribed intramuscular injections of "Suprastin" for the baby, then only the nurse should be entrusted with these procedures. Keep in mind that self-administration of the drug in the form of injections can lead to irreparable consequences. So don't risk your baby's he alth if it's not necessary.
Use of the drug at an early age
Babies up to a month "Suprastin" is not assigned. This is especially true for premature babies.
From the age of one month and up to six months, the use of the drug is also undesirable. But in critical cases, the doctor may prescribe a Suprastin solution to the baby. With a barking cough in children at this age, injections are most often prescribed. The drug is administered only intramuscularly. The first injection is always given to the child only under the supervision of a doctor.
As for pills, there is no consensus among doctors. Some doctors boldly prescribe a quarter of "Suprastin" with a dry cough. To a child at an early age, tablets are given only in a crushed state, along with food or drink.
But other doctors believe that giving babies a drug in the form of tablets beforetwo years is not possible. But the reviews of parents confirm the high effectiveness of the medicine for coughing in a child.
The maximum amount of the drug should not exceed 2 mg per kilogram of the child's weight. Otherwise, the risk of overdose may be too high. In addition, you can not give "Suprastin" to a child in parallel with sedatives, sleeping pills and painkillers, as it enhances their effect several times.
Overdose
Significant excess of the recommended dosage can lead to the development of negative symptoms in the child. In this case, the baby may appear:
- involuntary muscle contraction;
- whims - laughter flowing into crying;
- discoordination;
- urinary retention;
- pupil enlargement;
- intense thirst;
- skin redness;
- increased body temperature, fever;
- rapid heart rate.
First aid for overdose
If you notice signs of an overdose in your child, you should immediately call an ambulance. Gastric lavage may help the baby if done within 12 hours of taking a large dose of the medicine. To do this, the child needs to be given at least one and a half liters of warm water or a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Then you need to provoke vomiting by pressing your finger on the base of the tongue.
You can make your baby feel better with activated charcoal. It is necessary to give medicine to a child at the rate of 1tablet for every 10 kg of body weight. Activated charcoal can be replaced with enterosorbents. Children are allowed to give "Laktofiltrum", "Polysorb", "Enterosgel" and their analogues.
In order to avoid an overdose, it is recommended to give the child "Suprastin" at night. From cough, this drug helps even with a single use. At least if the symptom is not viral, but allergic in nature. Moreover, it is at night that children often develop attacks with suffocation.
Analogues of the drug
Drugs with identical properties can come to the rescue in case of individual intolerance by the child's body to any ingredients of "Suprastin". Of course, the pediatrician is much better aware of what can replace the drug. But there are several analogues of "Suprastin", which are most often prescribed:
- "Fencalor" - pills that are contraindicated in children under three years of age;
- "Omeril" - tablets and dragees, which are forbidden to use up to two years;
- "Zirtek" - tablets and drops, prescribed for children from six months, have fewer side effects than "Suprastin";
- "Claricens" - tablets and syrup, should not be given to children under two years old;
- "Lomilan" - tablets and suspension, can be administered to children from 3 years old;
- "Loratadine" - the most affordable antihistamine, not recommended for infants under two years of age;
- "Claritin" - syrup and tablets, contraindicated up to three years;
- "Tavegil";
- "Zodak";
- "Diazolin";
- "Cetrin";
- "Fenistil".
Almost all of these medicines do not harm the child's body, do not have many side effects, unlike Suprastin. But at the same time they do not have the same efficiency. They are prescribed only for a slight cough of an allergic nature.
Reviews about "Suprastin"
This medicine is not used as often in coughs in children as it is for other allergies. But those parents who gave this medicine to their babies note its high efficiency and safety. According to users, "Suprastin" is an effective remedy that quickly copes with such a problem as coughing. It can be safely given even to the smallest patients from the first month of life.
The minimum number of contraindications and side effects make this drug one of the most popular remedies for treating coughs and other manifestations of allergies. But, despite the fame of "Suprastin", in no case should you independently prescribe it to the baby and determine the required dosage. Only a pediatrician can prescribe the amount of medicine and the duration of the course of treatment.
