lynn Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 DD woke up last night with the barking croupy cough. I sat in the bathroom with the shower on for about 20min. She slept through the night and has not coughed since. Her peditrican has morning hours on Saturday. Bring her in or not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 I wouldn't, but that's just me. I suppose it depends on your level of comfort in handling coughs, your daughter's overall health, and what you envision the doctor is going to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 My experience with croup is that the first night is *usually* the worst, and the doctor wouldn't do much if she's not showing symptoms now. (*If* she had a history of respiratory problems, he would probably give you medications in case it comes back and is worse...) So I wouldn't take her in *now*. I think he'll just tell you that *if* it's worse at night and you can't get the cough calmed down (steaming bathroom, sticking her head in the freezer, back to the steam, etc), you should take her to the ER. (When my kids were babies, one of our pediatricians said that often just getting outside for a while on the drive to the ER cleared kids up enough that they could just go back home and go to bed...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalicoKat Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 DD woke up last night with the barking croupy cough. I sat in the bathroom with the shower on for about 20min. She slept through the night and has not coughed since. Her peditrican has morning hours on Saturday. Bring her in or not? Is she running a fever? Has she run a fever for mor than 3 days? If not it's probably viral and there's nothing the doctor can/should prescribe. Is her breathing labored? Is she acting listless or unenergetic? If so I'd take her in. What is the mommy meter screaming? Trust your instincts. They're usually dead-on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whisperlily Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 We have had persistent problems with croup here. It sure is scary when they sound like that in the middle of the night, isn't it? I have had to call 911 only one time for croup, and we have had a separate overnight stay due to severe croup. The question you have to ask yourself is whether they are getting enough oxygen. When kids are croupy, *usually* it just sounds scary. You did the right thing. A steamy bathroom sometimes works, alternating steam with cold. Like someone else already said, bundling them up and take them outside to breathe the cold air (or leaning into the freezer if it's not cold enough outside). IF you hear what they call a "crowing" sound when they're breathing IN, you need to get help right away. You'd recognize the sound if you'd heard it. They bark a cough, and can't really get air back into their lungs, so it makes a high pitched sound as they try to breathe in. (That's when I had to call 911, and his oxygen levels were very, very low.) Or, if it looks like they're really working to breathe, then you need to get help. Most of the time, if they have an episode or two in the night that doesn't get to the point where you need to take them to the ER, and they sleep the rest of the night, it probably won't get any worse. Give lots of popsicles, ice-cold drinks, slushies, etc. The cold will help with the swollen airways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 Personally, I would take her in. Just due to our experience with croup. DD (who is now 23 months) has had reoccuring croup since she was 10 months old. We took her to the ER once in the middle of the night. And at a seperate occurance, she was hospitalized for one night. I dont play with croup.....I really hate it. I would take her and go ahead and get started on the steroids. And if she has problems tonight, take her outside into the cold night air instead of the steaming bathroom. The cold works almost immediately for my daughter and she starts to breathe better. Thankfully, she has been croup free for 7 months now and I'm praying that it stays that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof4ks Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 I would skip the appt. if she seems fine today. The croupy cough usually only happens at night, and unless she has asthma or something that will make croup worse all should be well. The only croup I have seen go bad was in infants and those with severe asthma, but of course I am not a doc just a Mom. That would require the ER anyway, not the doc's office. The doc will give steroids (probably orapred) for 3-4 days, but I honestly don't know if it helps. With or without the steroids my kids recovered in 2 days everytime, so now we just skip the roids. HTH a little. Hopefully your munchkin will feel better by the end of the weekend! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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