Self-care for the common cold
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Hello, my sister and her 8-year-old daughter, staying in Canada, are suffering from common cold. My sister also has received warnings from her daughter's pediatrician about the dangers of OTC cough medicines in children when her other children were younger, but she is suffering from a bothersome, dry cough that has kept her awake the past 2 nights. Please recommend some self care advices for her.
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@Anup In 2008, the FDA issued warnings about potentially fatal adverse effects associated with the use of cold and cough products in children younger than 2 years. Later in 2008, manufacturers of cold and cough medication voluntarily elected to relabel nonprescription preparations with the warning “Do not use in children under 4 years of age.” In 2018, the FDA strengthened warnings regarding the use of prescription opioid-containing cold and cough products, removing the indication for use to treat cough in any pediatric population or individual younger than 18 years. Understandably, a parent or a caregiver can feel overwhelmed when making a decision about their child’s health based on all these concerns. In your sister's case, however, given the child’s age and presenting symptoms and that there are no reports of serious symptoms, such as shortness of breath, dyspnea, hemoptysis, immunocompromised status, and night sweats, a nonprescriptive antitussive medication, like dextromethorphan or diphenhydramine, could be considered at the age-appropriate dosing. Alternatively, or in conjunction with use of pharmacologic options, a nonpharmacologic intervention, such as the use of nonmedicated cough lozenges, a humidifier, or a vaporizer, could be considered while symptoms persist
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