I have light seasonal allergies in the early spring and fall, easily controlled by OTC Claritin. It's never been an issue for me, but I'm not sure how meds work for children.

I'm wondering if Natalie has an allergy. About every month or so for the last 3 months she has a spell. The first time I thought she had a cold, but now we're starting #3 and I don't think they're colds.

She can wake up fine and 3 hours later her nose is running and eyes are watery. Never a fever, never aches and pains, just frustration with her nose and eyes. The first time and this time were both preceded by time spent outside. The middle time just started one morning a few hours after waking. This usually lasts about a week at most, then she's fine again; however, it then seems to move to her chest and we have a few days of coughing. The first time I actually took her to the ped about 10 days later because I could "hear" her breathing and rattling in her chest. They gave her antibiotic and cough med and it went away. The middle time there was slight coughing and we'll see what happens this time.

I'm just beginning to think she has an allergy, to what I don't know. Should I take her in for something? Should I give her something OTC, or is there anything OTC for kids her age?(she's 2 1/2) Will they just assume it's an allergy and try her on something? It's NOT all the time. Roughly every 4-5weeks over the last 3 months, lasting 4 days or so, then gone.

Any experiences are appreciated! TIA

By Ginny~moderator on Sunday, March 18, 2007 - 08:53 pm:

I would definitely not give her anything OTC, especially with what has been published recently that the FDA has strong reservations about "children's" cough and cold medicines, even at the minimum recommended doses. I would ask the pediatrician for a referral to an allergist, and see about some testing. Although if you can hear her breathing and she is rattling, I would also wonder about asthma.

As for what it could be - almost anything. Which is why you'd have tests if the pediatrician agrees that a referral is a good idea. But I would also explore the possibility of asthma. I know Scott had asthma and as a child - and even now - when he had/has a bad cold, it almost always goes to the lungs and he has to have an antibiotic to avoid having it turn into pneumonia. 99% of the time his asthma is in remission, but a bad cold is always a danger point for him.

By Debbie on Sunday, March 18, 2007 - 09:19 pm:

I would definitley take her to the doctor. The watery eyes makes me think it is allergies. Unfortunately, both of my boys have seasonal allergies and asthma. Their main triggers for asthma are colds & allergy flair ups. The rattling in her chest would concern me. And, at her age, I would hate to give something OTC without first consulting with a doctor.

By Trina~moderator on Sunday, March 18, 2007 - 09:53 pm:

To echo Ginny and Debbie, I also think it's a good idea to take her to an Allergy/Asthma specialist. Allergies and asthma often go hand-in-hand. Both my kids have allergy induced asthma. They're both on an Asthma Action plan which includes Claritin and maintenance asthma meds.

My kids take the Claritin Reditabs, but I believe it also comes in a liquid form for smaller children, however, as Ginny mentioned, I'd consult a doctor first.

By Jjb on Sunday, March 18, 2007 - 10:49 pm:

I would take her to an allergist. We had to go that route with my son who had food allergies as an infant and many sinus infections. They'll take a nasal swap and look at it under a microscope and can determine if she currently has any allergens and they should also do a skin test. It's not painful and will give you some answers. I was so relieved to find out what was causing his discomfort. My son is on Nassonex right now but we're trying to get rid of the allergens in our house so we can take him off it. Our allergist puts DS on 3 weeks of antibiotics when he gets an infection- they claim it's the only way to ensure the infection is really gone and prevents a replase. I'm not fond of the treatment but it does work. Good luck.

By Kittycat_26 on Monday, March 19, 2007 - 06:59 am:

You'll need to check with Natalie's Ped.; however, our Ped. has Timmy take 1/2 OTC Claritin in the spring and fall.

It seems to help him cope with the runny nose and cough.

By Reds9298 on Monday, March 19, 2007 - 08:22 am:

She doesn't have rattling now at all. That was after the first time (3mths. ago) and I took her in when I heard it. She said it was an upper respiratory infection and gave an antibiotic. We haven't had that problem since then, just a light cough about 7-10 days after the allergy symptoms.

At this point, I really don't think she needs an allergist. I just wondered what the testing was like. I expect that taking her in will result in something similar to your ped, Amanda. I would be happier trying something like that before going into a bunch of testing that doesn't seem necessary at this point. It's without a doubt not a daily problem, but about once every month to 6 weeks.
Thanks for the info everyone! I will likely take her in.

By Debbie on Monday, March 19, 2007 - 09:21 am:

My oldest ds gets rattling in his chest with the asthma, but my youngest doesn't. He gets a cough. Everytime he got a runny nose, watery eyes, etc, it would go into a cough. So, it doesn't have to be rattling/wheezing/inability to breath to be asthma. Now, with preventative medication and an asthma action plan, my oldest has not had a flare up in over a year. Now, my youngest also has reflux which agrivates the asthma, so he does still have flare ups, but they are definitley less frequent, and less severe.

I would suggest keeping a diary of her symptoms, and how long they last.

By Kittycat_26 on Monday, March 19, 2007 - 09:48 am:

Our ped was pretty laid back.

It went sort of like this. It won't hurt him so try it and if it helps, we know it's allergies. They agreed that it was not a good idea (if not needed) to have a 2 year old go through allergy testing.

Good luck.

By Tripletmom on Monday, March 19, 2007 - 10:39 am:

Ditto Amanda!! We used Claritin(liquid) for Katie around the age 3 mark for just one spring.The runny nose and itchy eyes really bothered her.We never had problems since.(knock on wood).If you find the otc's aren't working then I'd advise taking her in to get checked.As said above allergies and asthma do tend to run together.

By Debbie on Monday, March 19, 2007 - 11:59 am:

I should have said, that we didn't go through allergy testing. Their doctor knew from the symptoms that it was allergies/asthma. We just tried different medication, until we found the one that worked best.

By Reds9298 on Monday, March 19, 2007 - 01:43 pm:

When she had the rattling the first time, the ped specifically said that it was not asthma.

Today she is better, but we also haven't been outside but only briefly. We were outside a good hour ot two yesterday, and it was so much worse once we came in. I honestly think she does have an allergy. I'm going to take her in and see if we can try something like Sherri and Amanda did.

By Amecmom on Monday, March 19, 2007 - 03:28 pm:

Helen's had Claritin which works well.
Ame