Reader Trung, male, 40 years old, HCMC: My 4-year-old child has been coughing for nearly a month now. He was diagnosed with bronchitis and took a 10-day course of Augmentin antibiotics. After stopping the medication for 2 days, his cough returned and he continued to take a 7-day course of Klacid antibiotics. After stopping the medication for 2 days, his cough returned. He has now stopped taking antibiotics for a week, only taking herbal cough medicine, and still coughs. He doesn't cough much, mainly in the early morning, but the phlegm sounds dry.
The doctor advised that the antibiotic dose could be increased, combining Klacid and Augmentin for another course to completely cure the disease, or waiting for more time for the child's body to recover on its own. However, the doctor also warned that if the cough persisted, the condition could worsen and the child would need to be hospitalized for antibiotic injections.
I am confused and don't know what to do. Will using antibiotics continuously harm my baby's body?
Ths.Bs Nguyen Huu Linh - Pediatrician - Nam Sai Gon International General Hospital
Hello Mr. Trung,
A 4-year-old child with a cough that has lasted nearly a month is a cause for concern. Despite two courses of antibiotics, the cough has not gone away. The continued use of antibiotics in young children should be carefully considered because it can cause unwanted side effects.
About your baby's persistent cough:
Chronic cough in children is defined as a cough that lasts more than 4 weeks. There are many causes of chronic cough in children, including asthma, respiratory infections such as bronchitis, and sinusitis. Other less common causes include foreign bodies in the airways, tuberculosis, lung tumors, and even an overreaction of the airways to environmental pollutants. Non-pulmonary causes of chronic cough in children may include gastroesophageal reflux or heart failure. Only when the cause of chronic cough is correctly diagnosed can treatment be effective.
In your child's case, antibiotic treatment (Augmentin, Klacid) has responded to reduce the cough, but the recurrence after stopping the medication suggests that there may be other factors causing the persistent cough. You should take your child back for a check-up so that the doctor can diagnose and treat the cough.
On the use of antibiotics:
Antibiotics are only effective in cases of bacterial respiratory infections, not in cases of viral respiratory infections, asthma and other causes of cough outside the lungs such as gastroesophageal reflux or heart failure. Rational use of antibiotics requires ensuring the right type of antibiotic, dosage and treatment duration appropriate to the type of infection and the patient's body.
Inappropriate use of antibiotics not only does not bring about effective treatment, but can also cause unwanted effects for children, especially the digestive and immune systems. Antibiotics can kill both harmful and beneficial bacteria in the intestines, causing an imbalance in the microflora and leading to problems such as diarrhea, indigestion or reducing the body's resistance. Furthermore, using antibiotics incorrectly or too often can lead to antibiotic resistance, making it more difficult to treat future infections.
Combining two antibiotics (Klacid and Augmentin) or increasing the dose of antibiotics must be done with extreme caution and should only be done when prescribed by a specialist.
Doctor's advice:
In this situation, Dr. Nguyen Huu Linh advised Mr. Trung to consider the following:
- Treat symptoms and strengthen resistance: As described, your child still coughs very little in the morning. You can continue to use herbal cough medicines to reduce your child's cough symptoms. In addition, it is necessary to pay attention to strengthening your child's resistance by ensuring a nutritious diet rich in vitamin C (oranges, tangerines, grapefruit); give your child plenty of water; clean the nose and throat daily with saline; keep the house clean; avoid dust and irritants.
- Monitor your baby's condition: If the cough does not improve or gets worse after 1-2 weeks, you need to take your baby to see a pediatrician again. In particular, you need to take your baby to see a doctor sooner if there are signs of high fever, fatigue, difficulty breathing, frequent coughing or vomiting, and poor appetite.
Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/tre-ho-keo-dai-co-nen-tiep-tuc-dung-khang-sinh-post790866.html
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