Do you need antibiotics for children with cough and runny nose?

One of the groups of drugs used in the treatment of cough and runny nose, are antibiotics. They are not always prescribed, but there are situations when such drugs are justified and very necessary. Let's see when an antibiotic is needed for a sick child and which of the drugs in this group can be given in childhood.

In many cases of diseases that occur with cough and runny nose, the appointment of antibiotics is justified, since the cause of such diseases in children are pathogenic bacteria. However, the doctor must be convinced of the need to take antimicrobial agents, because antibiotics will not help either with a viral infection, or with an allergic reaction, or with mechanical irritation of the nasopharynx and respiratory tract.

On the bacterial nature of the disease, manifested cough, tell these signs:

• Increase in body temperature over + 38 ° C for more than three days.
• Increase in the number of leukocytes in the total blood count. At the same time, the number of neutrophils increases and the leukogram “moves” to the left.
• Severe intoxication and shortness of breath.
• Long duration of the disease.

Application antibiotics when coughing necessary when:

• Bronchitiscaused by bacteria.
• Inflammation of the lungs.
• Angina.
• Purulent tracheitis.
• Respiratory lesions caused by chlamydia or mycoplasmas.
• Pleurisy.
• Tuberculosis.

The most correct behavior in case of suspected bacterial infection will be testing, among which special attention is paid to sputum culture. Such seeding will not only confirm that the disease is caused by bacteria, but also will establish which microorganisms it is and also find out which antibiotics they are sensitive to.

However, the results of such tests do not always come quickly, and the very poor state of health of the child may force him to begin treatment immediately. In such cases, prescribe drugs that have wide range of effects.

Choosing the right medication, the doctor will surely take into account the child's weight and age, since at 6 or 7 years old, you can prescribe only medications, and the selection of medication for children 2 or 4 years old will be limited by their age limits.

Usually one antibiotic is prescribed, which is more often presented for diseases of the respiratory tract suspension, powder or pills. If the disease is severe, the child will be shown an injection of an antibacterial drug.

Children with cough and runny nose, caused by a bacterial infection, most often prescribed drugs group:

• Penicillins. Such drugs are prescribed first for bacterial infections with cough and runny nose, since they can be taken at different ages - for both children up to one year old and babies at 3 years old, at 8 or at 10 years old. If they are ineffective, then prescribe other groups of drugs. Among all penicillin preparations, amoxicillin is most commonly used in pediatrics. The child can be assigned Flemoxine Solutab, OspamoxAugmentin Amoxiclav.
• Cephalosporins. These drugs are prescribed in the absence of the effect of taking penicillin antibiotics, as well as in situations where a bacterial infection has recently been treated for a child. These drugs include cefuroxime, Cefotaxime, Suprax, Cefixime.
• Macrolides. These are effective drugs that work well with respiratory tract infections. Among them, children are prescribed Sumamed, Macropene, Clarithromycin, Klacid, Azithromycin, Rulid.

1. Antibacterial drugs are important to take by the hour, because each drug has its own period of action. Each next dose will maintain the desired concentration of the drug in the blood, affecting the bacteria.
2. Change the dosage prescribed by the doctor, is unacceptable. If you give the child a lower dose of the drug, treatment will be ineffective and may result in the development of resistance to this drug. Increasing the dose does not help cure the disease faster, but can cause an allergic reaction and the development of various side effects.
3. It is impossible to stop taking the antibiotic earlier than prescribed by the doctor. If the pediatrician said to take the medicine for 7 days, and already from the 3-4th day the child feels much better, the antibiotic still needs to be taken further all 7 days to prevent the recurrence of the symptoms of the disease and the emergence of the causative agent's resistance to the drug used.

The ineffectiveness of the use of antibiotics when coughing may be due to:

• Non-observance of the necessary dosages.
• Interruption of treatment (skipped tricks).
• Unsuitable medication (does not act on the pathogen).