coughing at bed time?

[OhWhatAPalaver]

Why would DD (17 months) not cough all day and then as soon as she is put in cot and i go downstairs she starts coughing?! I don't think her room is particularly dusty and her sheets are changed roughly once a week. She doesn't have a cold or anything so I am a bit perplexed! Any ideas? Been going on for a few weeks now.

[Bangonthedoor]

Im sorry i dont have any advice but would be interested to know what others say. My 13 month old has just started doing the same. Although its not as soon as she goes down its generally over the course of the evening/night. And as you say she hasnt got a cold or anything and her room isnt overly dusty either. My dd sleeps on her front. Hope you get some advice soon. Apologies for hijacking your post x

[Sirzy]

Sounds like it could be asthma?

Do you damp dust the room? Does she have a lot of cuddly toys?

[Bearandcub]

Get a de-humidifier?

[OhWhatAPalaver]

She only has the one cuddly toy that she takes to bed with her so don't think its that.

We don't damp dust the room, does that make a big difference? Sorry if i sound dim but how would a dehumidifier help?

no worries for hijacking bangonthedoor :)

[Sirzy]

My son is asthmatic and damp dusting dramatically reduces his night time cough

[OhWhatAPalaver]

Thanks Sirzy will give it a go, hoping it's just a minor cough or catarrh but will try it and see if i notice any difference :)

[hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman]

Are the room's windows open during the day? DD is asthmatic and coughs like a trooper at night if her windows are open during the day.

[valiumredhead]

You need a humidifier to help a cough not a de humidifier as you want to add moisture to the air.

I would pop along to the nurse to rule asthma/allergies out if it carries on.

[Themobstersknife]

Both my girls are coughers. Humidifiers always work quite well and also Vicks on feet. I think they might be very mildly asthmatic but have never really managed to get anyone to take it seriously.

[OhWhatAPalaver]

her room window isn't open much at all but the bathroom window is adjacent to her room and that is always open, it wouldn't surprise me if it's an allergy as she's got eczema and had allergies when she was a baby that she has now pretty much grown out of. She is quite a sensitive soul all round really!

[Sheshelob]

DS started coughing about 4 months ago and still coughs occasionally at night. Coughs stay around for a long time. I don't think it is anything sinister.

[Sheshelob]

Sorry - DS is 19 months

[janey223]

DS sometimes does this with teething, ibuprofen helps stop the secretions and calms down the cough.

[50shadesofbrown]

Another one who reckons it could be asthma. I'm asthmatic, I don't often wheeze though (only in cold weather). However I do tend to cough a bit when I'm lying down. If I've got or had a cold I can cough until I'm coughing up blood, have burst blood vessels around my eyes & it often triggers a full attack. It can last hours, literally. But during the day, you'd never know.

If there are asthma, eczema, hayfever or other allergies in the family, it's worth getting it looked at. They all tend to be linked & often run in families.

[Bearandcub]

Whoops! Yes I should have put humidifier, that'll teach me for posting and running.

A humidifier for all the reasons Valium mentions up thread. We have recently got one principally for DS1 who coughs dreadfully at night. It has helped a lot.

[NorksAreMessy]

Came over just to say 'asthma'

Feather pillows? Animals that snooze on the bed?

Doctor can do a very simple blow-test to determine, but a blue puffer might help

[valiumredhead]

Piriton can help with the cough if it gets bad.

[froggiebabies]

Another one who thought asthma straight away. A night cough is often and indicator. My asthmatic dd doesn't wheeze but coughed at night until controlled by medications.

What allergies did your dd have? Mine has egg allergy, hay fever, asthma and eczema.

[kimmills222]

Apart from all the reasons and solutions stated in the above posts I would say you should think about giving him light food at night thats easily digestible and also a little warm water instead of cold water. This would also ease digestion. It may be possible that he has some kind of digestion problem and when he lays down he feels uneasy.

[OhWhatAPalaver]

Can you get such young children tested fir asthma? I thought it was quite difficult to pin down when so young? She never wheezes but does seem to get mild hay fever and she does have eczema. She was allergic to cows milk protein but think that may have calmed down now. She has come down with a cold now so hard to tell if it had anything to do with that :/

[valiumredhead]

My ds never wheezed either, just had night time cough which confused me terribly and I put off going to the GP

[Sirzy]

They can diagnose off the symptoms. DS was diagnosed at 12 months but his is pretty severe.

Even if they won't give a diagnosis they can still prescribe medicine to treat the symptoms

[OhWhatAPalaver]

Thanks folks, will see how it goes after her cold has subsided and if it continues then will get her down to docs!