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toddler with chronic, persistent cough - could it be asthma?

4 replies

satinandsilk · 09/04/2012 19:42

Wondering if anyone has any shared experiences of a baby with a chronic cough. My daughter, now 15 months, has been a cougher pretty much from day one (we called her "barky" it was so bad when she was tiny.) This winter it has been really terrible - about every five weeks she comes down with a coughing episode which generally lasts a week or so and is terrible at night.I assumed it was just a succession of bugs (her brother is at school now so brings home all the colds etc) but it was happening so often, and so chronically, I eventually took her to the GP. He took one look at her healthy looking ruddy little face and rotund body (she's 75th centile despite both parents being small and trim) and declared there was nothing wrong with her; listened to her chest and heard nothing of concern. He said it was just a winter thing and not very unusual; by March things would ease off. However, here we are in April, and last night she LITERALLY coughed all night. YOu'd have to hear it to believe it - it was impossible to imagine that anyone could cough without break for ten solid hours. But she did - in her sleep. None of the rest of us got a wink. I must admit she is once again full of cold - so perhaps she just has poor immunity (despite a good diet) and this is how it expresses itself; OR could this be asthma? I am thinking of pushing for a referral to a specialist or going private - I just feel instinctively that this amount of coughing cannot be rights. She does not wheeze. Any advice/shared experiences very appreciated. I am not a fusser generally but beginning to get concerned now.

OP posts:
stormgirl · 09/04/2012 19:45

sounds like asthma. not all kids get breathless. do have her checked out before it gets worse.

RunningOutOfIdeas · 09/04/2012 19:53

I can't remember the exact number, but kids are supposed to get about 6 colds a year. Of course these will usually be over winter so coughing every 5 weeks could be all the bugs. There is a nasty one at the moment that causes coughing for up to 8 weeks. If the usual tricks to alleviate night coughing (raising head end of bed, Vicks on chest or eucalyptus oil on feet, menthol plug in thingy, warm bath) don't make any difference then it would be worth getting gp to consider asthma.

PoptartPoptart · 09/04/2012 20:09

When DS was 3 we had a similar problem. I was really worried but we kept getting told that it was nothing, just a cold or a virus, his chest was clear, blah blah. I'm sure they thought I was just being paranoid or overreacting, especially because whenever we went to the doctors he looked a picture of health, despite having been coughing all night long. Deep down I knew something wasn't right, so I videoed him coughing in his sleep one night and took it to the the doctors as evidence. We were referred immediately to the asthma clinic for further investigation. Have you got a camera on your phone? Might be worth a try? It also helps the doctor hear exactly what type of cough it is, dry, chesty, wheezy, etc. In DS's case it turned out to be mild viral induced asthma but with a dose of underlying silent reflux too. He had reflux meds to strengthen his stomach flap for a couple of months and we have never looked back. Good luck

satinandsilk · 09/04/2012 20:18

Thanks for the responses. That's very interesting Poptart . My mum has had serious asthma all her life so there is a family history.I have an Iphone so could try videoing it with that...

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