Acute Respiratory Infections in Children (Common Cold; Pneumonia)

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Acute Respiratory Infections in Children (Common Cold; Pneumonia)


Acute Respiratory Infections (ARIs) claim lives of about 1 million (10 lakh) children of less than 5 year of age every year, in
India.

It is important to take some precautions if your child gets an attack of ART.
A child with common cold often becomes irritated and refuses the feeds. She/he often has fever, running or, blocked nose. If these symptoms are noticed, it is advised to seek help of a health worker. Meanwhile, you can start giving steam inhalation to the child and apply some soothing balm on the forehead, chest and the nose to alleviate headche and to clear the blocked nose.

For steam inhalation, boil 3 A mugs of water in a bowl (bhagona). Sit on a chair with the child on your lap. Put the bhagona with steaming water on the floor and cover yourself (with the child) and bhagona in a tent of a bedsheet. Sit there for about 10-15 minutes even if the child cries. Alternatively you can close all doors and windows and then boil water in bhagona on an electric heater in the room itself. Allow the steam to spread in the room for about 30 minutes.
For blocked nose, you can also use home made saline drops. For this, boil water in katori and add about one teaspoonful of common salt. Cool it and saline drops are ready for use. Use one drop in each nostril 4-5 times a day.

Antibiotics and cough syrups are not useful in most of the ARIs and hence should not be used. Infact, these can cause problems.

Keep a watch on child's breathing rate. If the breathing becomes difficult, rapid and there is retraction of the ribs while breathing, it is a warning that you must see a paediatrician at the earliest. It can be pneumonia which will surely require antibiotics for its treatment. Pneumonia can be life threatening.
As in diarrhoea, continue normal feeding of the child during an attack of ARI. Never reduce or stop feeding the child.

rever

If the child has fever, you should make sure that fever does not go above 102c°. If the fever is high, remove unnecessary clothes from the child's body. You should immediately start therapy with water (called Hydrotherapy). Sponge the child's entire body with wet cloth or leave a wet cloth on the body for 5-10 minutes and reapply by wetting and wringing it again. Keep doing it till fever comes down. Seek help of a health worker.



Other common guidelines for better care of the child (of any age)

• Keep the nails of the child short and clean.

• Wash the head nicely with soap and water to prevent liceor other infestations of the scalp.

• Don't allow the child to become undisciplined. Don'tsuccumb to unreasonable demands of
the child. However,do show your affection in abundance through your TLC(Tender Loving Care).

• If the child is otherwise normal but refuses to eat, don't betoo anxious. Never force to feed the child. If possible givedifferent food preparations to the child everyday. After all,who does not

want variety?


Contrary to what you might believe, Kajal is of no use tothe child's eyes. Avoid it. It will be better if you wash thechild's eyes with clean water a few times, every day

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home