11 year old DD, constantly coughing

[MrsKCastle]

Just wondering if anyone has experience of this? DD has had a cough for... not sure how long, certainly 2 months +, DH thinks longer. She seems to have spent most of the year coughing, going through phases with how severe it is. It just never completely shifts. Seems to be set off by things like exercise e.g. during swimming lessons and PE.
I know this can sometimes be a symptom of asthma, but she doesn't have any other symptoms and it doesn't really seem worth bothering the GP as it isn't really causing problems, just a bit annoying.

Any thoughts?

Annoy your gp, a cough is what my sons asthma first presented with and coming into winter where she could catch a cold and potentially become unwell with it you’d be best getting her checked out. Especially as it’s exacerbated by exercise.

It sounds like asthma.
Its perfectly possible to have coughing without wheezing or any other symptoms.

Contact Asthma UK who are absolutely brilliant. You speak to a specialist nurse who can advise you what to say to your GP.

My 8 year old daughter has asthma and it is exactly as you described. She is triggered by swimming and we took her to the doctors as she was constantly coughing there. Got given asthma pumps and it's really helped. She has a daily brown pump and a blue one for before swimming and the coughing has stopped.

My DD has asthma and her only symptom initially was coughing, particularly at night times. She's on inhalers and you wouldn't know she has it now, it stopped the coughing completely.

Cough was the only symptom of asthma with DS until
He had a full blown attack.

Thank you everyone. Pastaagain, that must have been very scary. I think you have all convinced me to get her seen, although it might be some time before we can get a GP appointment.

DD’s asthma presents as a cough as well

Asthma sounds very likely. When you ring the GP surgery, it qualifies as urgent - asthma, if she eye to have a full blown attack, is life threatening. Don't be fobbed off.

My nephews are both asthmatic, and as the night temperatures have recently started to drop, they are already using their puffers in the night.

My 7 year old DD has been coughing constantly for about 6 weeks. It's a dry single cough, repeated constantly every few seconds (sometimes longer gaps) from the minute she wakes up until she falls asleep. I hear her in the night sometimes too. No signs of any kind of cold. No phlegm.
With her I think it's a habit/tic, and I've read that they're very common in children. Could it be a tic with your DD? My DD tends to be a bit anxious, which can be a cause. She's got a GP appointment booked for a couple of week's time about something else, so I will mention it then if she's still doing it!

I don't want to worry you, but my dd had a constant intermittent cough for about 18 months. Then one night she had a huge asthma attack and ended up in intensive care and nearly died.

I know thst sounds like a ridiculous mumsnet scare story but i wish id known it was an asthma symptom.

We were told by our GP two weeks ago that DD’s (age 10) ongoing cough (often at night or triggered by exercise) couldn’t be asthma because she has no wheeze.

I wasn’t convinced so it’s enlightening to see so many here say that cough was the major or only presenting symptom.

On sunday my DD could barely manage a two mile slow walk...

The advice to ring Asthma U.K. is good, I think I will be doing the same tomorrow.

We were told by our GP two weeks ago that DD’s (age 10) ongoing cough (often at night or triggered by exercise) couldn’t be asthma because she has no wheeze we were told the same. It's bollocks.

Thanks again for all your replies. I am keeping a record of how often it is happening and what the triggers are etc, and I will take her to the GP. Trewser, I am sorry to hear that you and your DD went through such a horrible experience. I hope she is better now?

DD told us about her first cross-country lesson in secondary school last week. She was proud of how she'd done, but it was only after starting this thread that I asked about her cough. She said she'd had to stop for coughing fits maybe 5 times in a 7 minute run? But at home she can sometimes go hours without coughing, so it's not seeming like a 'normal' cough or a tic.

She is fine now - her asthma is well controlled but she still has to be monitored, 8 years on.

I often get persistent coughs and was diagnosed with asthma as a student as a result. In my 20s I used a blue and brown inhaler but to be honest they didn’t make an enormous difference and I stopped. Now in my 40s and I still get bad coughs if I get a cold but have never had an asthma attack. My mother started having them in her 50s so I’m aware it could yet happen, but my story so far is fairly benign.

Thanks again everyone. I have taken her to the GP and she has been prescribed a blue inhaler, so we will see if that helps at all.