Any asthma experts - do you think this is asthma? DS1 5yo - night time cough

[scrambledhead]

I have posted on here before re his croup. He is 5 but hasn't outgrown it yet. Our last trip to A+E was a month ago. As usual he had oral steroids and was much better pretty much straight away, back to school after a couple of days.

Since then though he hasn't been able to shift his cough, which is worse at night. Our GP has given us a brown and a blue inhaler. We've been using the brown for 3 weeks now and the blue just on odd occasions. I've been doing my homework and reading posts on here about asthma + inhalers but he has no wheezing, no breathlessness - just a night-time cough (which I do find very stressful by the way after 4 years of listening out for croup and numerous trips to hospital).

I'm wondering is this just an annoying cough that will (hopefully) disappear soon - or can he really have asthma. If it is asthma could it have been brought on by the recent croup?

Sorry this is so long. Thanks for reading.

By the way we don't smoke, no pets, no family history. I know all the tricks for croup (not that they work for him - we always need oral steroids). Any tips?

It could well be asthma - often in children the only symptom is a night time cough.

The brown inhaler should start working any day - it can take a few weeks to kick in. Is he having it through a spacer?

I would recommend giving his blue inhaler regularly at bedtime for now - you can also give it at night when he is coughing. Make sure he has it through the spacer. Also try opening the windown a crack (as long as he isn't under a draught). Warm rebreathed air can make coughing worse.

You might find Asthma UK helpful

I second all sidge has said and and don't stint on the blue inhaler especially at night. We saw a big difference after 4 weeks of the brown inhaler after about 4 weeks with dd (now 2 on inhalers for a year now main symptom dreadful night time cough really terrifying).

Thanks both

I've been a bit reluctant to use the blue one - maybe that's where I'm going wrong. I guess these inhalers are nowhere near as strong as the oral steroids he has for croup.

Yes we have a spacer.

Thanks again.

Hi My DD had a number of chest infections from birth (now age 3 3/4), after last visit to GP (nearly a year ago), GP said she'd had quite a lot of infections for her age, but her only real long term problem was night time cough.

We were given both inhalers,now only uses brown one in morning and at night through a spacer, and cough has gone (touch wood no chest infections this winter either).

The blue inhaler is important because it dilates (opens up) the airways, reducing the cough. It's not a steroid and only has a short term (about 4 hours) effect.

Even the brown steroid inhaler is only 100 micrograms per puff - a single steroid tablet is 5 milligrams so you can see how the doses differ. It is really important to give what has been prescribed, and don't be afraid to give the inhalers - far better to take regular small doses of inhaled salbutamol and steroid than be poorly and need oral steroids.

Hope things are better soon

Thanks. Although croup is really scary and stressful I know what it is and I know what to do. I'm finding this a bit vague. I guess I'd like a diagnosis either way. I suppose if he's still coughing in a few weeks I should go back to the GP.

He sleeps through most of the coughing but I find it really stressful - always panicking that it's going to go croupy.

Poor chap. I just went up and gave him the blue inhaler - couldn't wake him up though. He wasn't happy.

Thanks for your help. If anyone ever needs any croup tips I'm your woman

You can give the blue inhaler whilst he's asleep if you like. Put the spacer against his face and he will breathe it in whilst sleeping.