Flu, RSV, and COVID are circulating in larger numbers this 12 months. And so as to add insult to damage, there’s a scarcity of over-the-counter kids’s drugs in shops. What must you do in case your child will get sick? We known as on UVA Children’s pediatrician Sarah Boggs, MD, to reply mother and father’ steadily requested questions.
My Child Has a Fever. What If I Can’t Find Children’s Medicine?
Fever-reducing kids’s drugs helps your youngster really feel higher, however don’t stress for those who can’t discover any. Fevers are not often harmful. Kids and infants typically tolerate fevers nicely, even as much as 105° F.
Can I Give My Child Adult Medicine?
Almost all kids’s drugs is weight-based. You shouldn’t give your youngster an grownup drugs until it’s the fitting dose based mostly on their weight.
What If I Can’t Find Cough & Cold Children’s Medicine?
We really don’t advocate these for youngsters underneath 6. They have a variety of negative effects and little profit.
Even in case your youngster is older, use these with warning. Be positive you comply with the instructions and cease if it’s not working — extra isn’t higher.
Also, some embrace fever reducers like acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen. Be positive you don’t unintentionally double up on these.
What Else Can I Do to Help My Child Feel Better?
We advocate treating signs as a result of few medical therapies work. These embrace:
- Cool mist dehumidifiers
- Getting loads of fluids
- Warm drinks
- Rest
- A spoonful of honey a number of occasions a day (solely in kids over 1 12 months) to assist relieve coughing
- Nasal saline sprays
Nasal suction may help younger infants. But don’t do it an excessive amount of or it’ll trigger irritation.
Read extra about which cures work and don’t.
How Do I Know If My Child Needs to See a Doctor?
You ought to take your youngster to the physician in the event that they’re:
- Having bother respiration
- Not ingesting and getting dehydrated
Does Your Child Need a Flu Shot?
Ask your youngster’s physician or make an appointment with a UVA Health pediatrician.
Your youngster is high-risk for extreme sickness from flu, COVID or RSV in the event that they’re underneath 1 12 months previous or have:
With any of those circumstances, you could have to take them to the physician sooner.
How Can I Keep My Kid Healthy?
The most useful factor is prevention. Get COVID and flu vaccines.
My Child Had the Flu. Do They Still Need a Flu Shot?
Yes. They can get the flu greater than as soon as in a season. The vaccine protects in opposition to a number of strains. If they get “influenza A,” the shot can nonetheless shield them from “influenza B,” for instance.
They can nonetheless get the flu after a vaccine. But they’re at decrease danger for issues, going to the hospital, and dying.