2 1/2 Yr Old Coughing During the Night...

It is good that you're getting your daughter in to see her doctor, I was always taught that if a child developes a fever when they should be getting over something it's usually an indication of infection. If your daughter has had her fever everyday since the night she stayed with her dad then I would almost demand a chest xray when you see your doctor... even if her lungs sound clear, it could be pneumonia. As far as fevers go though, I know they tend to scare us moms, but they are our natural way of fighting things off. I know 102 sounds high (and can make us, and little ones, uncomfortable for sure) but it is not dangerous... really the only time you need to be concerned about a high fever is if it is 105 or over, and those cases are generally cases of children being left in a hot car- at least that's what we were told by Children's hospital when we went through an ordeal with our daughter. Also, all the fever meds, motrin, etc, are just fever reducers, they're only supposed to reduce the fever by a degree or so and make you more comfortable, so don't worry if it doesn't get rid of the fever. I hope that encourages you as far as her fever goes... and back to the coughing... go with your instincts... if your gut says something is wrong, DO NOT IGNORE IT! My daughter had a cough for a week, then developed a fever, I had her into the doctor several times, I knew something was wrong, they diagnosed her with strep the first time, a few days later she was diagnosed with pneumonia, and still wasn't getting better on all the meds, the drs office kept putting us off she had had her fever for 14 days and I demanded to be seen again and by a different dr, they did blood work, and she was admitted to Children's hospital that night... I knew something was wrong, but I wasn't demanding enough, until I had had enough, so if you sense something is wrong, don't back down! Sorry if this is a little extreme, I just would hate for someone else to have to go through what we did! Best of luck to you!

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My first advice is to take her back to the doctor & be VERY thorough about the length of her illness, and the varied treatments that have been used, AND the effects, or lack there of. Doctors are diagnosticians, not Gods; they need all of the info if they are going to make an educated diagnosis & treatment plan. That said, when my daughter was a baby & toddler she got bronchitis a LOT. The doctor kept giving her penicillin, or a derivitative there of & she never seemed to fully recover. Finally she broke out in a huge rash (it was awful, it looked like she'd been beaten with a baseball bat), that was when they figured out she was allergic to Penicillin. They gave her Keflex (a Sulfa drug), it cleared up and she never had it again (she's 25 now).
Some things to know about Bronchitis: Do NOT allow anyone to smoke around your baby, it makes it worse. Keep a humidifier in her room, and in the rooms she is most often in. If she is having trouble getting the phlegm up & out of her lungs pat her back with a cuffed hand about midway down her back to help loosen up the congestion. Have your doctor prescribe her an expectorant, the one that worked best for my daughter had codeine in it, and so she would cough like crazy, get the junk out of her lungs & then go to sleep. DO NOT give her a cough suppressant; she needs to get it out of her lungs.
Good luck (o:~
~Abuelita

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Insist that your pediatrician refer you to an allergist/asthma specialist. Nighttime coughing is a classic symptom of asthma and/or acid reflux, which go hand-in-hand. I'm concerned about the lingering fever -- that makes me think there is an infection and it could have turned into pneumonia -- insist on a chest x-ray. My little boy also had these symptoms (starting about the age of 1 1/2) and was always coming down with bad colds, snotty noses and my doctor tended to pooh-pooh it and say "some kids just catch things worse than others." After a touch-n-go bout with pneumonia (we ended up in ICU), we finally got to a specialist and got on the right meds, and he's been fine ever since -- very frustrating and in hindsight, so unnecessary. The good news is that when he turned 5, he seemed to outgrow it. Word of advice: Be your child's best advocate. sometime doctors tend to treat symptoms one at a time and don't recognize the pattern -- keep a log and don't worry about being a pest and questioning their advice.

Hang in there and good luck with this. Please feel free to contact me if you wish. I am a mother of two -- daughter 8, son 6.

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Well that sounds awful! My MIL gave me Brigham Tea Drops for my cough. Here's an article about the herb, Brigham tea:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4188/is_20030313/...

You can also get capsules, or just identify the plant and make your own tea with it.

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Hi. I sure am sorry to hear that your daughter has a cough. I have a couple thoughts:
1. My daughter had a cough for about 3 months (!!!) when she was about 20 months old or so; our pediatricain finally prescribed a strong antibiotic that my daughter only took for 4 days--it totally knocked the cough on its rear-end and it didn't come back--finally! you might want to ask your doc about a stronger antibiotic.
2. My 5-month old son had RSV earlier this year. RSV is a virus that causes bronchiolitis (different than bronchitis), fever, and difficulty breathing. Generally it is found in kids 2 and under. I understand that this year was a particularly bad one for RSV. My son caught it at the beginning of May, which is the end of the "season" for RSV. Because it is a virus, antibiotics don't help it. RSV can last up to 6 weeks. A simple lab test by your doc can determine whether or not this is what your daughter has. Might be worth asking. Rest, fluids, a humidifier, and propping her bed up will all help. You only need to worry if she is having extreme difficulty breathing (really sucking in or her respirations are high). Otherwise, it's really just a waiting game.
Good luck, and I sure hope she feels better soon!
S.

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Until you mentioned the fever, I was thinking you might want to consider GERD: Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease. Basically, it's acid reflux that causes a chronic cough, especially at night, and not uncommon with children. You might want to research it a bit. My dentist suggested my five-year old might have it, and as he pointed it out it did seem she had several of the symptoms. You might want to do a quick Google search just to rule it out (or be informed to talk to your doc).

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Bronchitis can hang around for a very long time, as well as resurface. Something like Decadron or Prednisone may help with the swelling, which will in turn help with the cough. Also, if the cough was lingering before the bronchitis, it could be allergies. A daily allergy med may help clear up both the cough and the bronchitis by keeping it from being irritated. Just some things that have helped our little breathing-issue prone little guy. Hope she gets better soon!

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Sleeping laying flat can make a cough act up. If you can, elevate her bed. I put blankets and towels folded underneath my daughter's mattress. Not too high where she would slide down the bed, but just enough so she was slightly elevated. Humidifier also if the air in your house is dry. Also, a little corn syrup or warm apple juice before bed will help coat the throat and are the most recommended cough remedies for young children. Good luck, hope it feels better soon!

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Your daughter is definitely fighting an infection. She has a temperature because her body is battling. She is coughing at night because of the mucous draining down the back of her throat. She might have a sinus infection. But she might also have a more serious upper respiratory infection. It's good that you are going to see a pediatrician. Until then, run a humidifier at night. Take her into the bathroom and run a hot shower without the fan running in order to create steam. Also, get saline mist and squirt it up her nose regularly, but especially at night. Give her tylenol/ibuprofin to ease the pain. She might also have an ear infection. I hope she feels better soon. My mom is a nurse and my kids have had these symptoms many times.

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It seems like if it is bronchitus like, it's an inflamation of the bronchial tubes and what I've been prescribed for that (as has my son around 20 month and since) is an asthma inhaler.. both a steroid and rescue. Coughing always seems worse at night.

You might go to a pediatric asthma specialist.
L.

Has she been checked for Asthma?

If a fever lasts more then five days then you need to take her in as the meds are working and you want to make sure it isn't pneumonia. Try Vicks Vapor Plugs at night in the bedroom, it fills the air up with that smell and helps soothe a cough as well as the rub on their chest. Coughs can last a good while even after it has past. Bronchitis can hang in there but fever shouldn't last more then a few days on meds.
Always follow your instinct and call the Dr if you are concerned.

Bronchitis can last for weeks before it resolves completely. But fever and lethargy should improve on antibiotics in a short time. If her child is acting normally but still coughing it may be ok, but if not, it may be something other than bronchitis. Especially if the fevers stay. Either way, I agree you want to take her into the doctor and get her checked out again.