Does anyone have experience of a habitual cough in a child?

[IlanaK]

Ds2 is 6 and has had an unexplained cough for years, but it is particularly bad now. I have taken him to doctors about it in the past to no avail. This week I managed to see one of the top allergy/asthma consultants in London as I suspected cough varient asthma. He had skin prick allergy testing as well as lung function testing. All normal and the consultant said the most likely cause was habit - like a tick. He asked if ds2 coughs at night, which he does sometimes, and said we needed to check whether he was actually asleep when he coughed. If yes, then it is not habitual. Of course, he hasn't coughed once at night this week at all so I can't check. But he is still coughing loads during the day. It sounds like a loud barking dog (a neighbour actually asked us if we recently got a dog). His cough is immediately worse on exercise or going in the garden.

So, does anyone have any experience of a habitual cough. Did it seem to be triggered by things? How did you get rid of it?

My goddaughter developed one. In her case it was linked to her parents' divorce. It was a mixture of nerves and attention. Sounded awful, like a barking dog.

She had some counselling and the cough slowly disappeared.

Not to say that this is in any way comparable but it did sound terrible and people thought she must be poorly but she wasn't. Well not physically iyswim.

Rightly or wrongly her parents were told to ignore it completely.

my son does have a loud barking dog sort of cough too. but usually it comes with a weather change or in colder seasons autumn and winter.

But he has it quite a lot. i also thght my sons may be asthma but i've been told its just a viral thing and will clear away no medicine needed. he wakes up crying when its really bad and ends up vomitting too. i usually apply vapour rub on neck, chest and back, and within a day or two is is much better.

I've noticed when i used to use stand alone convection heaters in winter it would make it worse, even bring on the cough. So i quit using those, just stick with the radiators.

When i visit my mums in one room they have a mould problem. unfortunately we sleep there since its the spare room, and when we go all of us get the same problem, well me my son and my daughter. But we don't have like a barking sound.

It's funny you describe it like a bark, because that;s exactly what i told my doc. i've not been referred to an asthma specialist, but maybe i should push for one. He;s 4 now he's had it since about 2.

I was also told to totally ignore it. Very hard to do when complete strangers comment on it and assume he is ill and even move away from him.

We have an appointment with a different specialist next week to look at a chest xray taken this week and make sure there is nothing physical.

I can't think of any event that would have triggered it - like a divorce - but he is certainly the most "nervy" of my 3 boys and internalises things more.

But if it is habitual, why would it be worse with excercise?

sounds like asthma to me too - exactly like dd's symptoms. Has the dr measured his peak flow? Does it get worse in winter - does he get chest infections?

DS2 (or was it DS1?) had this in reception. The teacher was lovely but did find it a bit of a distraction in class. It was a nervous thing with him and did go of its own accord eventually.

His lung function test was normal. And they then gave him ventolin, waited 10 minutes and repeated it and there was no difference. The specialist (and he is an awarding winning expert) was definitive - it is not asthma.

Yes, I have asked him about it. He is not really good at explaining it. The GP asked him about whether he feels pressure on his chest - he doesn't. His airways are totally clear - no mucus at all. He just says that he feels that he has to cough and he can't stop it.

He does not get chest infection or anything really. Winter colds at most.

What is CAMHS?

No not asthma then. CAMHS =
Child and adolescent mental health services.

Reflux can cause coughing. As can certain heart conditions (though this could be ruled out as presumably GP was listening to heart when DS was coughing? My heart condition makes me "feel that I have to cough"- I know just what that feels like- the 'skipping' beat feeling makes me cough on reflex.)

Do you have any pets? My brother had a barking cough as a child whilst we had a guinea pig- as soon as it died, his cough disappeared.

Did I dream that you just moved house? If so, wondering if there has been any change in frequency....

Hope you get to the bottom of it soon.

The GP did listen to his heart so can't be that.

No pets, no carpet, etc. I am a very allergic person so we keep a very low allergy environment.

Yes, we did move house recently. He is worse since we moved. We lived on the most polluted road in London before we moved and now have a lovely green garden and surrounds (though still in London) so would hope it would be better. I did wonder if he had similar allergies to me to all things green and that was why he was coughing more in the garden, but the skin prick testing was negative.

Just noticed you said reflux. In a 6 year old??? What would be the symptoms of that?

Ah, thanks. No to all of that including the wheeze. Perhaps it is just habitual.

Sometimes you only have 1 or 2 symptoms though... maybe worth asking gp?

Habitual cough seems odd- my sister had one, but it was more of a type cough IYSWIM.

My son used to have a permanent cough, which was bad at nights and during exercise. Our GP said he might be asthmatic and gave us an inhaler but this didn't seem to make any difference. A couple of years ago his breathing really deteriorated during a bad cold and he spent a night in hospital on oxygen and a nebuliser - very scary for us! After that scare I refused to let him sleep in his bedroom again as it was the coldest room in the house. He now shares a much warmer room with his brother and we have had no further problems - he rarely coughs, no chest infections, no antibiotics. He has the odd cold in winter like the rest of us, but nothing worse than that. I can't believe the difference a change of room has made to his health. Don't know if this will help you but might be worth checking the temperature of your sons bedroom or if it's at all drafty!

My ds had a very similar cough for years, which was dismissed by a paed as "one of those things that boys of that age get" , was driving me mad and I even suspected TB.
Then for more serious but chest-unrelated reason we went gluten-free, guess what? the cough disappeared.
I reckon in your ds case it could be so-called silent reflux, when my ds gets glutened, his early symptom is the cough again, he then knows something wasn't right, can even happen with liquids.
Allergy tests wouldn't pick up gluten as it's not allergy per se, it's the heightened mmune system response, but not intense reaction as you would get in a allergy.
And if you are susceptible, he might also be affected as gluten susceptibility is in the genes.
Try food diary or going low on wheat for a few days to see if it makes any difference.

meant to say you are allergy-susceptible

My 4 years old ds cough for three month every day and almost every night. We visited five pediatricians and gave him different therapies, with no results. He has no fever, swabs results are ok, and nothing like infection, he is active, but in the morning he wakes up and cough for an hour, during the day few times and not intensive, at night again starts for half an hour, and it is like that every day. I am frustrated, since there is no other symptoms but intensive cough few times per day, no related to cold or hot air. I never heard about the same condition in kids, (with no other symptomsa at all) if there is anybody with the same problem...