4 Yr Old Daughter with Cough-variated Asthma

Updated on January 21, 2009
E.A. asks from New Albany, IN
15 answers

Hi - we are taking our daughter to a pediatric asthma/allergy specialist this week. Our GP thinks that she has cough-variated asthma since her ONLY symptoms seem to be a cough that will not go away. It's not whooping cough, it's not related to a cold, her lungs sound completely clear ... and I am sick to death of pumping more medicine into her without finding out what we can do to PREVENT this as opposed to TREAT the symptoms. She is on a nebulizer 3 to 4 times a day with two different medicines to inhale and is also on Singulair AND Zyrtec. We have a humidifier which seems to have helped tremendously at home but she still coughs when we go out or at daycare. I'm getting nervous that it could turn into 'regular' asthma and she will have to treat it while at kindergarten next year.

My question is - does anyone else have a child with this or did they have it when they were a child? What did/do you do to help prevent the symptoms from occurring? And what did/do you do when the coughing starts and nothing seems to soothe her which then makes her cough longer and harder because she's getting so worked up?

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So What Happened?

I want to thank everyone for their suggestions, comments, concern, and prayers. The doctor's visit went well but I never want to go through it again. I really didn't know what to expect - I thought we'd have a chest x-ray done, listen to her cough ... but instead it was a full panel of allergy testing. Luckily, my husband knew what was going to happen and he came with us. He held our daughter while she screamed and I cried right along with her. They ruled out asthma but determined it was a combination of allergies and reflux. Since it's common allergies, this weekend we're going to get our Oreck air purifier serviced and running again, we replaced the furnace filter with a Merv 13 filter, and are taking the dogs for a bath. She's still on the nebulizer and other meds but after 6 weeks, we're returning to the doctor to see if her coughing is better or gone and then start reducing the amount of meds. If there is no change, then they will send us to an ear-nose-throat doctor to see about removing her tonsils (very enlarged but she rarely has sore throats or strep). Thank you again! This is a great community with so many helpful members!

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J.D.

answers from Nashville on

My 6 year old daughter gets the same type of cough on and off throughout the year. I also did not want to pump her full of medicines that were not helping that much, anyway. You might want to put a few drops of eucalyptus oil in the vaporizer at night. It's very soothing. Also, I put my daughter on some very good Arbonne childrens vitamins, to strengthen her system and defenses and have her drink plenty of liquids. I do still have to give her a mild antihistamine now and again, when symptoms begin to strike, but the cough has not been nearly as severe or lasted as long.

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R.W.

answers from Charlotte on

Hello, E.! My daughter has the exact same thing. Sounds like she is barking instead of coughing! She is 11 and her cough started last April and lasted for 6 weeks before I took her to the doctor. I thought she just had a cold and cough. Our pediatrician, whom I love, kept telling me it was allergies and kept prescribing things that didn't work -- Allegra, some blue cough syrup, etc. I finally put my foot down and told them to not speculate but actually do the tests to find out what is happening. I finally called my insurance company to see if I needed a referral to an allergy specialist and they told me I didn't so I called a pulmologist/allergist. He is a wonderful doctor and he immediately told me she had cough induced asthma. He ordered a breathing test at the hospital which she didn't do too well on. He told me that it would take time but our goal is to stop the cough. He put her on 3 medications -- on oral and 2 inhalers. Singulair and Asmanex and Foradil. She has been on this medication now since June/July and her cough is about gone. He told us it would take time. Also, when she gets a cold it flairs up again.

Please stop taking all medication and find a pulmologist who is a allergy specialist also. I live in the Lancaster, SC area and if you are near me I'll send you the name of mine. I got fed up with the prescribing medications just to speculate and not finding the cure! Force your pedicatrician for the referral if you need one. Check with insurance company and make sure you need one. But get one and be firm in your stance and take control. Don't let them control you! This is YOUR child! Good luck and let me know if you need anything! I'm praying for you!

T.C.

answers from Lexington on

Have you noticed certain times of day or different locations in the house where her cough is worse or less? My daughter coughed over a year until we realized she only coughed her worst at night or when she spent time in her room. She has an air purifier, cool steam vaporizer and I clean her room with natural based products and wash her bed sheets, etc..several times a week.
We finally realized that WE would get congested and or a cough when sitting on her floor while reading her books...it was her area RUG!! We bought it brand new from Target the year moved here and that was when her cough set in. We removed it and that night was the 1st time in over a year she slept through the night! After the guilt of "putting her through" doctor visits and OTC meds of all sorts, we were so relieved we solved the problem.
If your child's room has an area rug remove it for a couple days and see of this helps. If the room is carpeted then I would pull of the carpet and replace it hard wood flooring, laminate or even tile or those sticky square tiles. Heck, a sanded and painted plywood floor would be better if the carpet is the issue. You could paint it in patterns and FAV colors. Hope this helps.

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K.O.

answers from Louisville on

My daughter has this type of asthma. Our pediatrician sent us to an allergist...he wanted to put her on 6 different medications and see if her cough would go away. I didn't like that approach so I ended up seeing a pulmonolgist. The strange part was that she would just barely pass the lung capacity tests in the dr. offices but the pulmonolgist thought she should have a more thorough test so we went to the children's hospital for a more accurate test. She failed it miserably and was diagnosed with asthma. She takes Asthmanex and is currently on the lowest dosage and uses it only once a day (she had to be on a higher dose in the beginning and use it twice a day). She also uses Maxair before she runs or has gym class. My suggestion is to see a pulmonolgist. I think they are more in tuned to asthma and will know the right tests and medications to try. I hope it goes well. I know how annoying that cough can be for her and you both! When my daughter had this cough, nothing worked! She is doing great now and rarely coughs since starting her asthma meds.

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M.B.

answers from Charlotte on

could be allergies. i cough for the entire month of february every year and that is what i was told by my dr, allergies. it is on and off all winter long but that is the worst month for me. good luck

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B.O.

answers from Nashville on

When I was younger, age 5 till my early 20's - I had "climatic" asthma (meaning that whenever the weather changed I was sure to have an attack - was always a big drag for me especially around the holidays, since the weather always seemed to change right at Thanksgiving and Christmas). I also had many allergies and did all the shots, elimination etc. One of my allergies was to wheat, which I never ate, but still got sick alot anyway. Well, about 10 years ago when the medial communtiy discovered what "gluten" really was I was diagnosed with a gluten intollerance, and have never been sick since eliminating all gluten from my diet. And the point that I am getting to is that I have not had one sign of asthma since I have been gluten free. Also from what I have read this happens to alot of people who have asthma, it either goes away or greatly improves when they eliminate gluten from thier diet.

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L.J.

answers from Lexington on

I was wondering if you've noticed anything else along with the cough. What I mean is, does it occur only in certain places or certain times of the year. When I was your daughter's age I was allergic to the cold air of winter, and I got sick every year. I still have asthma very infrequently, but it's always triggered by something.

I agree with you about wanting to limit the medications. Hot steam should be the best. If you're not at home, you can always go into the bathroom and run the hot water. That could give some relief. And you might try covering her nose and mouth when she goes out during the winter. See if it helps.

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A.W.

answers from Charlotte on

I know this is going to sound wierd, but since you said your Dr only "thinks" she has asthma. Has she had any x-rays done. My doughter went through this a t about the same age, my husband and I both have asthma, so we took her to the GP. After I fussed for a while he sent us to an ENT who put her on Advair, he said the easiest way to check for asthma was to treat it, I went along because of the family history. It didn't work. He sent us to get an x-ray done to check the size of her adnoids, only to find out that she had a MASSIVE sinus infection, yes a sinus infection at 4. It was bad enough that I could see it, and the teck actually was willing to mention it to me. My GP said that he had never heard of a child that young getting a sinus infection, because their sinuses sre not compleatly formed yet, but he could not argue with the x-ray. They put her on 2 rounds of an antibiotic and rechecked the x-ray after each round. Like I said at the begining I know it's strange, but you can never tell. She had no pain and no other symptoms, but the cough. Just another thought to add to the great advice you are getting.
A.

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B.K.

answers from Charlotte on

My 4 yr old son has this, I find it so weird that it's called asthma when all it is is a cough that won't go away (and he also gets a runny nose with his cough). Anyway, he gets it multiple times a year and doing the nebulizer twice a day with one of his medicines works (can't think of the name right now-my mind went blank). But I just had surgery for a deviated septum and have always had trouble breathing and my husband had problems when he was younger and had to use a nebulizer and had problems with his adnoids and such. The next time the cough shows up with our son we are going to take him to a Ear Nose and Throat doctor to see if it's something in that region that could be fixed or something instead of having to give him the steroid asthma medicine.
Hope that helps some.

B.M.

answers from Charlotte on

Hi E.,

My son has the type of asthma that presents as a whooping cough type of cough. He has had it since he was 3 months old. It was very frightening. He was not officially diagnosed till age 5. When the coughing would start, i would give him some coffee. It helps. AS he was drinking the coffee i would rub his back, speak calmly and tell him that everything would be alright. I would sit with him in a steamy bathroom until his lungs relaxed
My son was on a med to prevent an attack called flovent but no longer is. He still uses Albuterol when needed, but as he has aged,(16) he has needed it less often.
You will need to explain to your childs teacher/s the type of asthma she has and MAKE SURE that they GET IT because people do not usually recognize the asthmatic symptoms that your child and mine exhibit, and quite often disreguard the symptoms.
You also need to speak to the school nurse and leave an inhaler with her.
Do not allow your daughter to over exert herself in extreme temps as it will cause an attack whether it be HOT OR COLD. In cold weather cover her face so that she isn't inhaling the very cold air.
Email me personally anytime you need an ear. Your child as well as mine have a not so familiar type of Asthma. I am here for you.
Good luck
B. (and Kyle)

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K.T.

answers from Lexington on

There is a virus going around that presents itself just as you described. I know of several children that have had it since October and finally got better after being given an oral steroid. They were tested for whooping cough, given inhalers, antibiotics, singulair etc., too. My children both have upper bronchial asthma and showed symptoms (seal cough) as babies. It doesn't last months like this virus does.

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L.S.

answers from Jacksonville on

my daughter had something like it last year that lasted for over 3 months. She was on the same meds as your daughter and not getting better. Her cough was worse when running or yelling etc. It was almost a croupy cough. After 2 months, my daughter got an ear infection on sunday and i took her to a local urgent care. The dr diagnosed her with an ear ache, but he said the cough was a bronchospasm and can only be treaded with steriod - the type you eat. She was on this for 10 days and after the first 24 hours her cough was gone. Good luck and dont give up - keep bugging the drs.

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E.M.

answers from Louisville on

you are taking the right steps to get her seen. my daughter has asthma too and ALWAYS has a cough even tho shes breathing fine. i have never heard of this condition... very interesting... good luck

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J.S.

answers from Lexington on

I totally agree that the meds need to go. We don't realize, but alot of meds are the cause of alot of our problems.
Lots of times, we are not aware of all the carcinogens in our home. It has been a proven fact that our air quality indoors is much more harmful than outdoors due to the chemicals that we have stored in our cabinets. Take a moment to look at my website www.snapp.fourpointwellness.com and glance at a few things, you will be surprised. If you would like more info, just reply through my website.
My son is 9, we used to have nose bleeds and constant cough, since I have removed all pesticides and chemicals (cleaning solutions and everyday household prducts), he has improved tremendously.
Good Luck in improving your childs health

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C.R.

answers from Knoxville on

My youngest son has regular asthma. It started pretty much from the start of his young life. Finally when he was almost 8 mos. old he stopped breathing. We did mouth to mouth and took him to the ER. We lived less than 2 blocks from the ER. My husband took him to the ER while I grabbed the other kids. They immediately took him back and while my husband was getting the paperwork done the dr. came out and said why didn't you tell me that he is asthmatic? My husbands reply was because we did not know that. The dr. said that it was the worst case of asthma for a child his age. We had been going back and forth with the ped., telling him that there was something wrong, the hard to breath, coughing, sounding terrible, etc. He just said we were overreacting to a common cold. We changed drs. that day. The new ped. had a backround in asthma and allergies. She was AWESOME! She was one of the best dr. that we ever had. We did have a lot of trouble and spent a lot of time in the dr. office. Once we started treating the airway constriction things improved. We also saw a ped. pulmonarologist. My son was having bouts of heartburn, even though he never complained to us about it. He told the doctor exactely how it felt. The doctor said that he could not of been that exact and descriptive unless he felt it. We started him on a medication for acid reflux and it helped his asthma immensely. Good Luck!

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