nightmare trying to get toddler to take antibiotics

[theangelshavethephonebox]

It is taking two of us to get the stuff down him using a syringe.

He is swallowing the majority of the dose now, but the first few times we tried he managed to spit or dribble out quite a lot. Just wondered if anyone else had had this and if so, did you go back to the doctors and ask for more abs - given how it's always drummed into you that you must finish the course.

Thing is, it's hard to tell how much has been wasted and his symptoms have been improving steadily since the start of the course so just unsure what to do.

Have a chat with the local pharmacist and see if you could put the ABs in his drink.

Some drugs work fine when you do this, but others react wrongly and you should never do it, but the pharmacist will know which your type are.

Tis much easier when you can hide them in his food or drink.

I used to hide my sons in chocolate pudding until he got old enough to bribe with sweets.

They definitely have to be on an empty stomach, unfortunately, I have checked. And he's not old enough to understand bribery with sweets for later on - sooo frustrating.

I remember just putting one drop at a time on my fingers and letting my baby suck my fingers.

is the banana liquid one?

we had the banana one a few months back for another infection and he loved that one! This one is a nasty strawberry type thing and I can well understand why he doesn't want to take it

I did once mix meds with a teaspoon of neat Ribena (couldn't be. any worse than what was in it already!) and it worked.

yes, seems unlikely that ribena or fruit juice type things would interfere with the medication - will ask the pharmacist about that

Oh Like the neat Ribena idea.
My DDs on ABs indefinitely due to cystic fibrosis and there are some she point blank refuses as they're vile. Do ask the pharmacist if you can get it in a different flavour.

didn't realise they come in different flavours, thanks Janni. Must be hard for your dd, being on abs all the time.

She's never known any different. What's hard is when they suddenly give me a new flavour without warning and she's outraged!!

We had a problem with all meds and ny DD. She won't even take Calpol!!

I ask the doctor to prescribe Azithromycin as she only need 1 dose a day of 2.5ml for 3 days - this amount we could sucessfully syringe in.

The dosage is worked out on weight.

My GP had to look it up on his system to work out the correct dosage.

Hope this helps.

dd2 has had ABs too often in her first year, three different sorts so far, and the only success we've had has been in putting them into her milk. There are a few you shouldn't do this with, but not many, I'm told - and if you give a small amount of milk, on an empty stomach, I don't think the fluid counts much.

Syringing total waste of time with dd: she's been on reflux meds since 8 weeks and is an expert at spitting them out.

Oh, and Calpol, Nurofen, or Medised all go in milk too - as do reflux meds.

It depends on the antibiotics. Some should be taken on an empty stomach. If that isn't necessary, yoghurt or full fat ribena often does the trick. If your LO won't take them even with the ribena.yoghut), throw it away and start again with a new dose (i.e. don't do what I once did and try to syringe in 30 mls of Ribena).

If it's a really foul tasting one then I am afraid even the Ribena won't mask it. The only options are to ask the GP for one mixed in one of those bright pink child friendly syrups (the pineapple one is very strong and covers up a lot) or to force it in. This latter is no fun, but the best way I have found is to wrap the child in a towel, sit on them hold their cheeks, put the syringe to the back corner of their mouth and squirt as fast as you can. The rub under the chin to make them swallow. It sounds harsh (I used to cry after doing it), but if your child is sick and really needs the drugs it has got to be done.

HTH, and don't worry too much. Just try to get most of it in each time. Ask the Dr for more drugs if you end up wasting too many doses - they will understand (I once had to make 3 calls for extra...)

My GP prescribed clarosip, granules in a straw, which worked a treat. Most do not prescibe it as it costs a lot but it was the only one DD would take.

www.netdoctor.co.uk/medicines/100000579.html

Works better if the child is thirsty, fizzy drink works best and they gulp it all. DD thought it was christmas as she was actually allowed to have the drink. She did not have infections for a whole 6 months as she finally finised a course of antibiotics. Now she is 4+, she takes the normal syrup ones with a bribe

DD (15 months) was on them daily for 5 weeks not so long ago. We ended up pretending to give them to the cats and then us and then this that and the other - she was suitably cajoiled. We also squirted it in at about 1ml at a time in to her cheeks at the back so nothing came back out again. I guess we were just lucky

Loads of good advice here, thanks everyone. ScaryHairy, that technique sounds very similar to what we worked out with ds on the second day. He cries like we're torturing him but the second it's done he's completely happy again. Takes me a while to recover, though!

Will investigate clarosip, sounds interesting. Will talk to the GP tomorrow about whether we need extra doses.

Message withdrawn

If you are having no luck.....
My ds wont take the bright yellow amoxycillin (sp).he spits it out or just gets into such a state it will never happen.I told the doc and she presribed the brand name version of the medicine which is AMOXIL.It is a milky colour and comes in a glass bottle and ds actually looks forward to haveing his next dose.It is much more expensive than the 'happy shopper' yellow version and thats the reason they don't automatically give the better tasting one.
Hope this helps x

He's 21 months. Not young enough for cajoling, not old enough for bribing!

That's interesting, about the price difference, nobodysfool. It seems odd that there should be a more expensive, nicer tasting version but great that your doctor prescribed it for you.

Spoken to my GP who reckons he should have another five days worth. It's Flucloxacillin he's having.

The price difference is to the NHS not the patient.

Oh god, fluclox is VILE. My DD had 6 weeks of that 4 x per day last summer. I found nothing covered up the flavour. The first couple of weeks involved the wrestling technique and then she settled down and would sort of lap it up a ml at a time. The final time that I got more from the GP the pharmacist mixed it with pineapple syrup and poor DD was completely affronted at having yet another awful taste inflicted on her, so we were back to square one with the wrestling!

5 more days is not too much longer. I would continue with the wrestling and take heart from the fact that he won't remember it.

One other thing - you could try giving the meds then sticking in a chocolate button. The chocolate gets rid of the nasty aftertaste and gives the child a reward too. Don't worry about his teeth - it's only 5 days-worth!

6 WEEKS! omg Scary, you and your dd deserve a medal for that!

Well, wrestling it is - have tried tempting him with every kind of juice on a spoon but he won't even have the juice itself, let alone juice with the abs mixed in! Think he knows what I'm trying to do.

I'd been thinking about choc buttons but was trying to stick to the empty stomach thing - maybe I'm being too literal about it.

It's only a chocolate button, I'm sure it will be ok. The hospital told me to try yoghurt (it was a dead loss with the fluclox) so obviously a little bit of is not too bad. It made me feel better too that DD got a reward after being pinned down by her mummy...