Can u request a blood test for a 3 year old?

[Helenemjay]

I know its not a nice thing to expect a 3 year old to have but he has had a very very persistent cough since he was born, we have tried treating him for asthma but it never made any difference, my older son who is 5 has asthma and has bee treated for it since he was 2.5 and you can tell its asthma - the wheezing and coughong everytime he runs about, but ds2 doesnt do anything he jsut coughs all the time, he has had a record amount of chest infections, and has been taking antibiotics on and off since he was weeks old!! he has had chest x-rays and they are fine - i just cant figure out whats wrong with him and no-one seems to be able to give us any clues, the last few months whenever he gets a cold or sickness his strains last sometimes 3 times longer than everyone elses! im quite worried about him and i feel like asking our GP if he could do a blood test and just make sure everythings ok, id hate to think i was being a bit of a fussy mum, but the persistent coughing is getting him down, and us too for that matter - he coughs so much sometimes he vomits all over! any help/advice would be greatly welcomed!!

i requested a blood test for ds1 when he was two or three. he went for a long time where he just wasn't eating very well, was very pale,had a really big lump in his neck. i'd taken him to the clinic expecting to be reassured to find the very sensible nice hv telling me that she was worried too. gp was n't keen but saw i was worried and went ahead.it came back normal.
this coughing isn't normal and you're not a fussy mum, you're just a mum. if we don't look out for them who will?
go for it.

Is it possible that the coughing is habit??
This happened to my friend although her bub was slightly older, started out like croup, then months later he was still coughin cause he liked the sound, but once he started he could't stop.
As for persistant infections, sound like his immune system is needing a boost. multi vits and suitable pro biotics.
Are his gland swollen at all?

getting blood from a 3 year old isn't easy and could leave them with a permanent fear of needles. If he hadn't had it from birth I'd suspect whooping cough, which can make you more susceptible to infection for several years. I'd suggest trying him on probiotics and switching him to goats milk for a couple of weeks. If he was no better after a fortnight then I'd go for the blood test. Also worth trying that for the asthmatic one as cows milk can cause problems for asthmatics.

I wouldn't bother asking GP for a blood test- you have to have an idea of what you're looking for to be able to test effectively. Ask GP for a referral to a paediatrician instad. A persistent coughcan be a sign of asthmas, and the repeated chest infections make it seem more likely

His glands arent swollen and never have been as far as i have noticed, we have seen a paediatrician and he said during a few weeks when ds did have a cough that it is something he has obviously grown out of, then about 3 weeks later he has started again! im not sure if it could be a habit thing, he coughs so much that he looses his breath and his eyes go all red and puffy and sometimes it goes so far as he vomits all over! - did so recently in the middle of Tesco and covered himself with a mucusy-vomit (sorry tmi!) he gets so tired and fed up and sometimes just spends all day sat in a chair looking very sleepy, then all of a sudden he will wake up one day completley fine and be a very happy active little boy for about 2-3 weeks sometimes less, sometimes longer, and then all of a sudden you can hear him in the middle of the night coughing to a point where he makes his nose bleed! and it all starts again! - this is NOT normal surely! i dont want to make him frightened of needles and cause him problems, but what if something is wrong?

Helen,
first of all you need to decide what your most worried about/looking for.
The symptoms you are describing when considered in the bigger picture do not give the impession that your child has a chronic illness, however, this is based on you telling us a snapshot of what you child is up too.
He does have some symptoms of certain illness, but not given the fact that he is well and has had no swollen glands fever etc.
Ultimately i dont think that routine blood tests would show ap anything except if he's anaemic, and this can be checked by a pin prick test.

Blood test for 3 year olds if done properly by a paediatric phlebotomist will not neccesarily give him a phobia of needles.

BUT I think you need to book a long appt with a gp you trust and tell him exactly all your fears/probs etc. Write them down befor you go in, then based on all the info the dr can help you to decide if a routine blood test was needed or if any other investigations should be carried out
sorry if this is long winded hth

No it doesn't sound normal but if you ask for a blood test your gp will possibly just do one for anaemia - and he isn't used to doing the test and may make a total mess of it. Ask for another referral to a paediatrician, then they can do whatever tests are necessary. While you're waiting to be seen borrow a camcorder if you can and make a recording of what he's like when he's coughing. I know that's hard as your urge is to comfort them but its hard to get someone to understand unless they can see/hear the problem.

Also if you don't want to try a diet change keep a food diary so you can try and spot a relationship to what he's eating/ drinking. Probiotics will boost his immune system and will also help if he does have a milk intolerance (milk increases mucus production in some people, post nasal drip causes coughing at night).

sorry - didn't mean to suggest there was anything serious wrong. It's possible his immune system is a bit low without there being anything really bad. Seeing a paediatrician would reassure you, though.

Thanks everyone! i saw a GP this morning who thinks he has asthma and so has put him on steroids wich seems like strong stuff to give a 3 year old and he's not quite 3 yet! but i guess he should know best! im going to go and search out some probiotics for him and ds1 - never thought about using those, thanks for that suggestion! i really appreciate your help and suggestions girls!