My four month old developed a stuffy nose a couple of weeks ago. She has trouble breathing at night, but seemed happy other than that. I took her to the doctor last Monday and he said the congestion was all in her nose so there was nothing we could do. She has continued to get worse. Now her nose is constantly running and she is so congested she has trouble drinking her bottle. She has gone from drinking 7-8 ounces to drinking 4. Today I noticed that she was coughing a lot--to the point where she would actually gag a little. We have tried the saline drops with the aspirator and a humidifier. It seems to help some, but I still don't see a lot of improvement. Is is possible that this has moved into her chest? Should I take her back to the doctor? Oh--she is sleeping at night, but restlessly. Has anyone else experienced this? Advice would be much appreciated.
Thank you all for your responses. My daughter seems to be feeling much better! We elevated her matress, used the Little Noses with the aspirator, and put Vick's Baby Rub on her at night. We also put a humidifier in her room. She seems to be feeling better and she is taking her full feedings again. Thanks for the great advice!
I have a now 5 year old that if he got snot in his nose invariably it would fall in his chest. We did saline - steamy showers, decongestants, zyrtec. You name it. A cold usually last 7 to 10 days if you are still having problems - don't hesitate to call the doctor.
I would probably just make an appt and go back in.
My 2-year-old son, who turned 2 on Monday, was in the hospital for 2 days with RSV this past Sunday-Tuesday. There were a lot of kiddos with it at Medical City Dallas. You should have her tested for RSV because it can be serious in a 4-month old if not treated properly. Especially if you think it is going into her chest. That is when the big problems occur. Better to be safe than sorry.
M.
The same thing happened to my son when he was 4 months old! He has really bad allergies and the Dr. said that was causing him to be so stuffy and congested. You might feel better if you take her in to get checked out. It could be absolutely nothing at all, but it's better to be on the safe side. When my son gets really congested, he hardly sleeps through the night because he can't breathe!! Something that worked for us that we use everytime he gets congested----Vicks Waterless Vaporizer. It's completely safe to use and has been our lifesaver!! We use it every time he gets congested :) (http://www.vicks.com/vaporizers-info.php) Good luck and I hope your daughter gets better soon!
My son has had allergies for as long as I can remember. If your daughters cold turns out to be allergies make sure you give her a bath before bed every night and change her sheets often. They get pollens in their hair and on their sheets during nap time. I also elevated his head with a slant wedge which helps. Also don't forget to wash her sleep toy/bear. Hope she gets better soon.
I had the same thing with my 4 month old and I called the Dr and asked, they told me to come in ASAP since he is so little and they can get RSV easily and it can be serious. We went right in and it ended up being a cold but I felt better knowing.
I'd call the dr. just to make sure it hasn't turned in to something worse....the cough could just be from all the drainage in her nose "tickling" the back of her throat. It's better to be safe than sorry, especially in an infant. If it were an older child, I might say to wait it out a bit and see if a fever arises or any symptoms get worse.
I agree about the vicks... And maybe let her sleep in her car seat where she is sort of tilted up or put a pillow underneath her crib on one end to elevate her. We are all congested over here too! Good luck I know it is scary but never dont call the dr. They are here for us.
I've gone through the same thing. Its not fun...for either of you. We just let it run its course, but that eventually went over a month. he would cough so bad that he gaged and spit up an entire bottle. at least one or two a day. we finally took him back after a month of the coughing and the dr. said allergies. so we started giving him benadryl (dr said okay) and it made all the difference in the world. we also did vics on his chest and feet, and used a humidifier. those were okay, but it was the benadryl that make the difference. i know meds for babies is a controversial subject, but ours has been fine and its the only thing that worked. ask your dr if he's okay with giving your baby benadryl. good luck!
I believe that it is better to be safe then sorry. Call your baby's nurse and find out what they think. In the meantime, it's important to do everything you can to keep the nose clear. Use the nasal aspirator often. I know it sucks because they freak out, but it will help prevent it from draining into the lungs. Also a cool mist humidifier will help. If the cough sounds like a seals bark, steam up the bathroom and take your baby in there. Croup is caused by inflammation in the throat area and the only thing they can do is treat the symptoms by giving a steriod. If your baby has a fever greater than 102 you should call the doctor because of how young your baby is. My son was six weeks premature and has week lungs. He has had croup several times and pneumonia four times in the last year, so I have gone through this kind of thing a whole lot. Follow your mother's intuition and if you feel like something isn't right at least call the nurse. That's what they are paid for and it will at least give you some peace of mind.
I think there is something going around. I had this horrid cough that lasted 2 months....nothing worked for me. My son had the same cough back in December that lasted a few weeks then stopped then returned then stopped then returned. It was some type of virus. It was always very bad at night. He would wake up coughing for 2 hours at a time. Our Dr gave us a prescription to help with the decongestion.. bromyst I think...it did not help at all. We also used a vics cool mist humidifier. Then we went back to the dr and he gave us another prescription that did help. The right prescription and humidifier helped ease the problem until it went away. We also did lie in bed with him during the coughing spells so that he could lie more upright that seemed to help some as well. I say take her in to the Dr. I was misrable listing to my son cough because it was very bad.
When in doubt - call the doctor. You will either go in and find that it is still nothing, or leave the office with a new plan to help your child. Either option is better than later thinking about what you "should have done."
Good Luck - and congratulations on being a first time mommy- it is truly such a special time : )
She could have allergies, pollen count has been very high the last few days. I and my 3 kids all have nasal allergies and it gets bad when the pollen count is high. We cough alot and have lots of congestion. Their doctor put them on zyrtec syrup when they were little, but I think they may have been a bit older than 4 months.
I'd take her back to the doctor and see about allergies. But at 4 months old, they may not be able to do anything. Try putting baby Vicks on her chest at night. It will help with the coughing and congestion. You may have to wait until she's 6 months to a year before they put her on Zyrtec.
I had the exact same thing happen with my baby and the Dr said to get Saline Nose Spray for the baby and spray then clear baby's nose with a bulb; also to put a Humidifier in the baby's room, and it worked. You might try that, but would also call the Dr on the eating thing.
