Question About Croup

My dd had croup when she was 9 months old. The only medication they gave her was a steriod to reduce the swelling in her throat so she could breathe better. So you might want to just treat him at home unless it gets worse.

I would personally take your child in to see the dr. My children have gotten croup several times. The steamy bathroom never helped them a lot, the cool fresh night air helped them the best. and a cool humidifer in their room helped a lot as well. But I always took them to the pedi to be on the safe side.

My son who is 4 has been in the er 7 times so far for croup. They can give him steriod shots and a breathing treatment that does wonders. There is also meds they can perscribe too. I would try at home things first but if it does not start getting better I would definitely take him in. Poor little guy.
S. bailey cld
Aurora www.tendermomentsdoula.com

Dear Mary
You should treat your child immidiatly,specially whe he has fever; could be somthing else like Larangitis....etc
He needs corticosteroid inhaler.
If you can buy from pharmacy is good.

S. Portoian MD

Hi M.,

I just joined Mamasource and I have been enjoying it. My son had croup so many times and I have brought him in to the doctor for it. Sometimes they might have to give a breathing treatment and steroids. The reason they tell me is that when you have croup your Esophogaus is swollen and its hard to get air and it is inflammed so thats why the steroids.

Thanks,
K.

When my kids had croup, they got perscription cough medicine. At least give your doctors office a call

My daughter had croup a couple of months ago and I didn't take her to the doctor. Run a very hot shower in the bathroom... shut the door turn off the exhaust and let steam build up in the room and let your son sit there for 5-10 minutes. Do this a couple of times a day. Also give him bits and pieces of popsicle or some ice chips to suck on every so often. Even take him out of the house in the cool air for a bit. All this helps with croup.
You can call your doctor and just check if he wants to see your son.

Good luck,
Aarti

Are you sure it's the croop? Have you called the doctor? One of my daughters has had pneumonia 4 times (she's 9) and every time she gets anything that resembles a cough and has a fever, I flip out. Call the doctor to be on the safe side

I would take him in so that they can tell you if the cough is in his lungs. Also your right croup you treat at home but it should be docter directed. My experience is croup is a scary illness.. if left untreated with docters help.

One thing I do remember is croup is something that little ones get. So hopefully your 7 year old has a cold virus which is going around and it comes with fever too.

Allmy best

Just last night I was up with my 6yr old with croup. She tends to get it a few times during the winter. I have been to the ER with her a few times. I have a nebulizer at home, so I will usually try that, the hot steamy shower, and the cold air. Sometimes it works, and sometimes not.

If the coughing get worse, go to the ER.

Hi M., for croup you should steam up the bathroom and have him sit in there for at least 20 minutes at a time(at least 3 times a day). Doctors usually do not give medication for croup because the barking sound is inflammation which steam will deflate.

Hope your little one feels better soon :)

Ms P. (Childcare provider since 1996)

Croup can sometimes break on it's own, but my son needed steroids to help him sleep at night and make it break. I would at least CALL and ask what they think. Also, croup tends to be a barky cough mostly at night... if your son is also coughing during the day you want to make sure that there's nothing else going on.

You should call your doctor. Croup can become very serious. The shower or cold air does not always work and you may need medicine to help him breath. My 18 year old daughter still gets croup and needs medicine to help her breath. Keep a close eye on his breathing especially at night. We have made many trips to the ER in the middle of the night because the shower or cold air did not help my daughter!

Croup can be very serious, but it usually occurs in younger children. If there is any associated breathing difficulty take the child to a doctor. Symptoms to look/listen for are a cough like a seal and wheezing on inhalation. Usually the cough is worse at night if it is croup. Medications for a cough will help calm it and there are stronger medications doctors can prescribe, but those will not be given unless there is difficulty with sleep. High humidity in a room where the child sleeps will also help sooth the airway. Also one thing when researching on the internet as a nurse, I look for sights that are .net .org or .edu, but try to avoid .com sights. Anyone can set up a sight and that is why I would still recommend seeing a doctor if there are breathing issues or is symtoms last longer than a 3 days with the fever because it could be a bronchitis or other bacterial infection needing antibiotics.

Hope this helps.

C.

I am an RN and work in an area where we are giving advice to people all day but this is in no way to diagnose or practice medicine!

Hello,

As the previous post stated run a hot shower and sit in the steam. Also a cool mist humidifier at night will help. If it doesn't get better in a couple days I would call your pediatrician.

Good luck!!
M.

M. -
Croup is a funny thing...suppose to be an infant disease...yet seems to creep in even to ages seven and eight. Unless the your son is having trouble breathing there really is not much to be done. If his airway is affected the hospital/doctor will provide medicine to treat that. Otherwise it is best to even steer clear of cough medicines which can irritate more than help. Tylenol to treat the fever (my three-year-old has croup right now). I checked out a couple articles on WebMD that were really helpful. For instance, I learned that it is a highly contageous viris - especially for little ones. Of my four little ones (6,5,3 & 20 mos) only my three-year-old actually gets croup. The little one got the high fever and just a slight cough. The others seem to be immune...thankfully. Best wishes and health to you and yours.

H. W.

Hi M.,
I used to be a pediatric nurse, and YES there is medicine for croup. A lot of times with croup, there's wheezing and difficulty breathing with kids. If he's breathing fast, hard, or you can see him use his neck muscles to breathe, then he definitely needs to see his doctor. They may give him a steroid to help manage the croup symptoms. I'd definitely call the doctor and see what they say. Hope your little one gets better soon!!

while it very well may be croup based on your description, I would recommend still seeing your doctor to exclude an alternative disease which may very well require treatment. God forbid you miss something serious that leads to severe illness, which may have been prevented with early treatment. The internet is great and all, but it the information it gives you may give you a false sense of security. It cannot replace the years of training that a pediatrician or family doctor have received.