Croup

[frangipanflowers]

I have posted in ‘Parenting’ but it seems a little quiet on the board so am re-posting here.

Hi, I’m pretty sure my 4 year old has croup. She sounds pretty terrible, lost her voice yesterday, hurts to swallow, temperature, cough which’s sounds like a barking dog (although the cough is not constant). Do I need to get her seen by a GP or is it a just sit it out and wait thing? Also any film recommendations would be gratefully received. Thank you.

Get fed appointment, from what I remember things can go downhill quickly, get them in a steamy bathroom, count breaths per minute, if more than 60 (or 80, I can't quite remember which) then straight to a and e but drs can assess for you. Good luck

Drs not fed

Thanks @raspberrycordial for replying. Will try and get her an appointment, she says it hurts to breathe and to swallow too. PS now I want some raspberry cordial!

Unless it’s bad enough to need steroids, Which from hour description it doesn’t sound like it is, then there isn’t really a need for medical treatment.

Fresh air is good to help relive the coughing. I have been told that steam is no longer recommend.

Steamy room isn’t recommended any more. Cold/fresh air is, so maybe open windows.

The sore throat and cough are unpleasant but not worrying. Look up then listen for stridor. It’s when the vocal cords have swollen and the child is gasping for air. That’s the sign that medical attention is required and it can get worse quite quickly (usually during the night).

My 4 year old has had this four times so far. Hope your DD feels better soon!

Our little one just had croup. It started with the barking cough one day, but only every hour or so. Then in the middle of the night she was really struggling to breathe. We took her outside and were advised to take her to the nearest emergency hospital. They gave her steroids which worked but then she deteriorated the next day (fever, miserable, strydor) so we had to take her back and they gave her more steroids. 2 days later and she's back to her old self although still a bit more tired than usual. I would say if you think it's croup, see the dr asap, the 2am drive to hospital is terrifying and you want to catch it early.

Steaming is not recommended any more. We had recurring bouts of croup with both Ds, they do grow out of it but it is really unpleasant. It's basically laryngitis so treat it as you would that: nurofen helps because it reduces the inflammation, paracetamol, honey and lemon, vicks on the chest, lots of drinks all through the day to keep things from drying out. I think In most cases it sounds worse than it actually is.

It's worth familiarising yourself with the signs to look out for that may need doctors attention, because it tends to get worse in the night and everything seems worse somehow at 4am. We had Many a pre-dawn trip to out of hours with our two!

I would go straight to the children’s emergency room with a child with stridor. I’m not sure if a gp can give the steroid treatment. We were there last week and got told to come back if it happened again.

Thanks for everyone’s replies. I have listened to Stridor and it sounds similar but not as high pitched as that. It’s only me guessing it’s croup, all the signs are there and it has been doing the rounds at nursery.
If I were to book a GP appointment is there anything other than calpol/ibuprofen that they would recommend anyway or should I go just to rule out anything else? Funny how your mind can’t think what to do when it’s your own child that is poorly.

I don't think GP's can prescribe steroids for active croup, but I have been prescribed dexamethasone for both my children to take at the first sign of croup to avoid the early morning A and E trip for them. The first time my oldest son had croup he was admitted to the paediatric ward as it has got so bad so quickly. Usually the steroids work well and as soon as the airways have opened they sound a lot better.

I've been at a and e for croup many many times for dts. There isn't really any treatment apart from dexamethasone if necessary. It gets worse at night so be prepared for that.

As others have said steaming isn't recommended anymore. Prop pillows up as much as possible and if it does get worse get them up and sit them up to try and reassure them.

Stridor is what you need to look out for, and also if they can't swallow or are dribbling it's a 999 emergency.

My GP prescribed dexamethasone for DS’s croup yesterday. I would book an emergency GP appointment and avoid A&E unless she’s really struggling.

My son has been prescribed steroids several times for croup from the GP. They only give them if it's particularly bad though. If they're just making the barking noise when they cough they may not give steroids. If the child is making the noise when breathing then they probably would (this is experience from my drs others may be different).
It normally passes in a few days although whenever my ds has had it a cough has lingered for a week or two.

Interesting - maybe prescribing rules have changed. My GP would never prescribe the steroids - it had to be a and e.

Hi. Thanks for everyone’s advice. We saw the nurse practitioner who didn’t like the sound of her so got the doctor who has prescribed her steroids. How on earth I am going to get them down her is another thing. Thanks for everyone’s input.

If they are the little soluble ones they used to say dissolve them in milk?

What steroids? Decamethasone comes in a liquid form, but you may have to search for pharmacies that have it in stock. Predniaolone (should be a 3 day course) you can get as soluble

Sorry yes, dexamethasone. It does come in liquid form but it will be a case of pinning her down I think unfortunately. I had to ring six chemists to find out but I have and can go back and collect it later.

Hi OP, I'm glad that you got your DD seen and she now has steroids. DS had this repeatedly until he was 5 years old, and within 24 hours of the dose of steroids he would be back to almost full health.

I second other people though, steam is no longer recommended, and I always found that taking DS outside would both calm him down and help him breathe.

Steam is very effective for croup but is no longer recommended by practitioners because some people managed to scald their young children by running hot showers to create steam, or so I was told by the nurse when my DD had croup. You can get humidifiers that release steam which might help with the symptoms.

I'm told by my 6 year old that Dex doesn't taste that bad..but we have a choc treat on standby so it's down the hatch immediately followed by treat. Make sure the pharmacy give you a syringe..that fits the dose in in one go! Nothing more infuriating than having a 5ml syringe for a 6ml dose!!

We put the tablet dex into petit fillies they don't even notice

Hi, so the steroids worked really well and there is no Barkley cough left but she has a really chest cough now and has been coughing for the past 2 hours constantly whilst in bed. Is it normal for croup to turn into a chest cough? Perhaps I’m expecting miracles too soon.

Any sign of croup in one of my kids, I give them a cortisone called Aspelone...I always have it at home and when travelling (you need a prescription). We’re abroad though so I’m not sure if you get it in the UK...

Thank you @Montsti. I will go and ask the chemist about what you have suggested. She had a pretty rubbish night coughing so much and her chest is quite rattly. I wonder if she has got a chest infection now. Her temperature is 38.9 too. Thanks for the suggestion.