If you are a paranoid parent and run to the doctor every time your child has a cold and a cough, let us tell you that doing this is going to be futile. As a cold and a cough is a viral infection which doesn t need medication or medical attention, it goes off on its own. However, at times a persistent cough and cold might mean something more than just a seasonal infection. As a parent, it is imperative that you know how to pick up the signs and realise that the running nose and sore throat is not just a symptom of the common cold but there is more to it. Here is how to differentiate:
Symptoms of the common cold
The typical symptoms of cold are a runny nose, nasal congestion, sneezing, coughing and a mild sore throat.
There can also be some amount of loss of appetite in children and some children may not want to eat, have a headache or be more tired than usual.
Colds can sometimes cause fever, but the fever usually isn t very high.
Colds usually last about a week but can last for as long as 2 weeks too.
Influenza (flu) virus causes high fever, cough and body aches, strikes more quickly than a cold and causes infected persons to feel sicker. While children with colds usually have the energy to play and keep up their daily routines, children with influenza are usually in bed. Here are 10 things to know about fever in kids.
If your child is suffering from an episode of cold and is experiencing all the typical symptoms as mentioned above, it can still pass as a viral infection. However, there are signs that say that the cold might be a sign of something more serious. Here are 13 things to keep in mind when your child is having fever.
If your child is under three months of age and has a cold call your doctor when your child is:
Having difficulty in breathing or has been breathing more than 50 times a minute through a blocked nose
Struggling to take a feed
Is not eating or is vomiting
Has a fever with a rectal temperature of 38.5 C or higher
If your child is little older or above 2-years of age and has a cold, call your doctor when your child is
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Breathing rapidly or seems to be working hard to breathe;
Your child s lips look blue
Coughing so bad that the child is choking or vomiting
These can be signs of pneumonia (lung infection) or bronchiolitis (an infection of the tiny airways that lead to the lungs). These conditions need to be treated by a doctor. Here are some common symptoms of pneumonia that you should know.
Call your doctor if your child shows any sign of a middle ear infection, which can result from a cold. These signs include:
High fever (especially fever that begins several days after the start of a cold);
Earache
Crankiness
Vomiting
Pus draining from the ear
Other reasons to contact your doctor when your child has cold are:
An eye infection with cold, i.e., if your child wakes in the morning with yellow pus on one or both eyes. Although red eyes and watery discharge are common with a cold, pus is a sign of an eye infection and should be treated.
If your child is much more sleepy than usual, doesn t want to feed or play, or is very cranky or fussy and cannot be comforted.
It s common to have thick or discoloured (yellow, green) discharge from the nose with a cold. This doesn t need an antibiotic. However, if it lasts for more than 10 to 14 days, contact your doctor.
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