4 week old ds with cough - advice please

[cappy1]

hello mums

my 4 week old has had a cough pretty much since he was born but no temperature, vomiting, or excessive spitting up and is feeding (bf) well. I have been to the GP twice and the last visit suggested infant gaviscon but what i have read about reflux does not realy tally with his symtoms so i am hesitant to give it to him. he coughs sometime during and after feeding but also when sleeping and it last for about 10-20 seconds and occurs about every two hours - has anyone else experienced this or have any advice?

thanks

He sounds quite well with it, so I don't think I would be worried. Maybe someone else who knows more about reflux will have some insight?

Is it a dry cough or spluttering?

I know nothing about reflux so can't comment on that, although it won't do any harm to try that I guess!

The cough in itself doesn't sound like to much to worry about. If it was constant or distressing him I would be more worried. As long as he is still feeding, having wet nappies and not struggling to breathe I wouldn't worry to much

Hi thanks for the replies - I had to get off MN but back now for a while.

vmcd28 - it seems like a spluttering cough - but not much comes out sounds wet though as though has some phlegm (not sure if that is how it is spelt)

I am not too worried about it as it does not seem to be bothering him much but it is not nice to hear as it is quite frequent - I hope it gets better soon. I could try the gaviscon but I am struggling with a 3 year old and keeping us all fed with clean clothes whilst only sleeping every 2 hours through the night - so don't want to have to prepare the medciation and give it to him four times a day as well if I do not have to. On the other hand I know that with little ones you have to try things as they cannot tell you what is wrong...

Does anyone know if coughing without spitting up or vomiting is a sign of reflux?

thanks

The reason I asked if the cough was dry is because my friend's baby had a cough that sounds similar to what you're going through. The gaviscon worked with her. The cough was "wet sounding" but she wasn't sick or anything. She was just getting a bit of regurgitation which was causing discomfort.

Is it worth trying for a few days? My other head says, if your baby isn't distressed or bothered by it, is it worth medicating? Or are you just wanting to know what's causing it?

Hi
I have a 15 week old and she had what sounded like a smokers cough at about 12 weeks. It sounded awful and every so often she would choke. Although it was frightening it was better for her as it was the only way her phlegm would come out as she couldnt clear it. She was happy, smily kicking away so docs were too worried. It did got to her chest but again she was well in herself so the docs gave her a paedeatric lintus just to coat her throat. She didnt like it and spat a lot out but it really helped. Its hard not to worry but they told me if she is happy, feeding ok and no temp then just keep an eye on her and enjoy lots of snuggles xx

Dont be afraid to take him to the doc as many times as you need to if it puts your mind at rest. x

I cannot understand how GPs seem to get reflux medicines confused. There are 2 classes of medicine given for reflux:

1/ Food stabilisers.

These are basically sticky substances that make food more stable in the stomach, so physically harder to vomit.

2/ Acid control medicine.

The two I have come across are ranitadine, which was very effective for our son, and domperidone, which I have heard and read mixed things about. There are others.

If there is no vomiting, there is no need to give a food stabiliser. However, if the coughing is causing pain due to acid, it may be worth trying ranitidine.

I would either ignore it completely or have your baby properly assessed by a paediatrician.

Thanks for your replies - I have decided to give him the gaviscon and see how that goes