Young children get sick fairly regularly. Therefore, the occurrence of cough in a child is perceived by parents as a completely normal phenomenon. However, in the most severe cases, coughing is accompanied by seizures before vomiting. Such manifestations may indicate the development of more serious pathologies than a common cold. How to eliminate a child's cough before vomiting, what to do in such situations? We will try to find answers to the questions presented.
Causes of Coughing before Vomiting
How to fix the problem? If a child coughs before vomiting, what should I do and is it worth worrying? Often, such manifestations are the result of the course of normal physiological processes in the body. The phenomenon is not a symptom of the disease, but only caused by the structural features of the children's gastric tract. For example, an unusual new food that is offered to the baby can be poorly digested, rejected and thrown back into the esophagus. Such manifestations most often explain coughing before vomiting in a child at night.
The cause of irritation of the mucous membrane of the nasopharynx in a baby is often the presence of too dry air in the room. In this case, coughing is often accompanied by vomiting if the child breathes through the mouth.
According to pediatricians, the above manifestations should not cause particular concern in parents. Since the nerve centers that are responsible for the formation of vomiting and coughing reflexes are found in young children close to each other. Increased irritation of certain receptors can cause activation of similar reflexes.
The child has a cough before vomiting - what should I do?
One of the primary solutions for the occurrence of vomiting with a dry cough in a baby is humidification. To do this, you can purchase a specialized device that produces water vapor and distributes it indoors. To eliminate the problem, it is also recommended to often air the room in which the child is resting. To top it off, it is advisable to wet-clean at least once a day.
If the baby has a periodic cough without fever before vomiting, it is worth resorting to regular water procedures. Bathing in warm water has a beneficial effect on the removal of sputum from the baby's nasopharynx. This process can be accelerated by the addition of essential coniferous or eucalyptus oils to the water.
An excellent alternative to warm baths in the fight against coughing attacks before vomiting is the inhalation procedure. Special inhalation solutions contain a whole host of components with expectorant properties.
As for taking antiemetic medications, pediatricians highly recommend not resorting to such a solution as therapy for a small child. The effect of chemicals on the body of babies is not fully understood. With the help of drugs, it is only possible to eliminate a strong cough.
Diseases that may cause coughing with vomiting
How to overcome a cough before vomiting? Treatment here involves, first of all, identifying the root cause of this manifestation. A number of diseases can lead to the appearance of a
gag reflex in a child:
- cold;
- whooping cough;
- asthma;
- bronchitis.
Next, we consider the features of the course of the presented ailments in children, find out how they provoke the occurrence of vomiting during coughing.
Cold
If there is a cough before vomiting, how can I treat this manifestation with a common cold? The mucus accumulated in the nasal cavity is swallowed by children during rest, which leads to the activation of the vomiting reflex. In the case of very still babies, sputum can be periodically pumped out using a special aspirator. Older children should be taught to blow their nose.
What to do when with a cold there is an increase in body temperature, which is accompanied by an acute cough before vomiting, full stuffing of the nasopharynx with sputum? In such situations, you should immediately seek qualified help from a pediatrician and follow the prescribed treatment.
Bronchitis
As practice shows, bronchitis disturb young children much more often than a common cold. According to statistics, complications of the disease are the main
cause of respiratory arrest in babies under 5 years old.
Infections, viruses, or allergens can cause bronchitis. Often, the baby’s delicate lung tissue is irritated by harmful substances in the form of coal dust, tobacco smoke or exhaust gases, which can also become a causative agent of the disease.
Symptoms of bronchitis
Among the main symptoms of bronchitis in children, it is worth noting:
- moist wheezing in the lungs ;
- labored breathing;
- excessive secretion of fluid from the nasopharynx.
Bronchitis treatment
To eliminate the manifestations of the disease, in particular to avoid the occurrence of vomiting in a child during coughing, with bronchitis, it is worth maintaining a high level of humidity in the room, providing the child with a plentiful drink.
The use of antibiotics is a mandatory measure in rare cases. Pediatricians recommend their admission only when combating an ailment in children under the age of 4-6 months.
Asthma
Due to the wide spread of respiratory infections in the unfavorable time of the year, as well as due to the deterioration of the environment, the child may experience a decrease in immunity. All this often causes the development of bronchial asthma, which may be accompanied by a cough before vomiting.
What is asthma? The disease is chronic. The cause of its appearance is regular inflammation of the respiratory tract. The consequence of the disease is the appearance of periodic bronchospasm, abundant secretion of mucus into the nasopharynx, which makes breathing difficult and causes vomiting.
Asthma symptoms
The harbingers of asthma are:
- abundant secretion of mucus with a watery structure from the baby’s nasopharynx after sleep, frequent reflex sneezing, a sensation of itching in the nasal cavity, which causes the child to rub his hands on his face;
- bouts of wet cough after eating;
- the appearance of shortness of breath when moving the baby in a horizontal position;
- intermittent breathing with short and frequent breaths.
In children over two years of age, the above symptoms can be supplemented by a feeling of excessive pressure in the chest, the inability to take a deep breath. If asthma is severe, vomiting reflexes during coughing can occur during wakefulness during the day, and not just after a night's sleep.
Asthma treatment
To this day, there are no drugs that can completely eliminate the manifestations of bronchial asthma in children. There are only medicines designed to destroy allergens in the body, stop coughing attacks, which is accompanied by severe shortness of breath or vomiting.
The fight against the disease should occur with the use of complex measures under the supervision of a doctor. Only a specialist can determine the severity of the disease and decide whether to increase or decrease the dosage of a drug.
Whooping cough
Pertussis in children can also cause vomiting. Symptoms and treatment for the disease will be discussed later.
The cause of the development of the disease is a bacterial infection. A special danger to the baby's health is the reproduction of pathogens in a 25-day period. It was at this time that attacks of severe coughing were observed, which could be accompanied by copious secretion of mucus into the nasopharynx with the occurrence of vomiting.
Symptoms of Pertussis
At first, the child has a runny nose, nasal congestion, regular sneezing, in some cases a slight increase in body temperature, which does not decrease if the appropriate medications are used.
At the third week, the cough intensifies, mucous secretions acquire a thick, pasty structure. With expectoration of mucus, the child's face turns red, conjunctivitis sometimes occurs, blood pours into the mucous membrane of the eyes as a result of excessive tissue overstrain.
Pertussis is especially dangerous for babies. In children of this age, instead of typical coughing attacks, a temporary cessation of breathing often occurs, which is life threatening without timely assistance.
Pertussis treatment
In the course of therapy aimed at eliminating the manifestations of whooping cough, the child needs to ensure complete peace. The baby is prescribed bed rest in a well-ventilated room, isolated from external stimuli.
To cure pertussis in children, the symptoms and treatment should be determined by a qualified specialist, based on the clinical picture of the course of the disease, the results of laboratory tests and epidemiological data. The basis of therapy is antibiotics, which belong to the category of macrolides.
Medicines for coughing and vomiting
What drugs are allowed to use if a child coughs before vomiting, what should be done in such situations? In such cases, you can resort to the use of medical devices that contribute to the discharge of sputum.
Medicines that can be used in case of coughing in children are divided into the following categories:
- Mucolytic - contribute to the dilution of dense sputum. Among the most affordable means of this property it is worth noting: “Lazolvan”, “Bromhexine”, “Ambrobene”, “ACC”, “Fluimucil”.
- Expectorant - allow you to drain phlegm from the nasopharynx: "Doctor IOM", "Pertussin", "Mukaltin", "Gedelix".
- Combined - have an expectorant, thinning mucus effect, which makes it possible to eliminate the cough before vomiting. The treatment of young children is recommended using the safest drug called Stoptussin.
To resort to the use of medical devices to eliminate vomiting during coughing is only necessary if bathing a child, humidifying indoor air, walking in the fresh air and inhalation do not bring the expected results. The effect of the above drugs on the body of the youngest children during treatment in the long term is not fully understood. Therefore, in order to avoid unnecessary problems, it is worthwhile to consult a pediatrician in advance.
Eventually
Parents who have several children of different ages have probably come across more than once cases when coughing is accompanied by vomiting. To avoid such misfortunes at an early age is extremely difficult, because the physiology of the kids is such that they constantly snotty and secrete saliva.
If, when coughing, there are prerequisites for the transition of the latter into vomiting, it is worth going with the child to the bathroom, filled with warm fumes. To avoid such manifestations also potentially allows a warm drink, walking in the fresh air. Seeking help from a doctor is worthwhile only if there are clear signs of serious illness.