Just a Cold, or Something Else - Big Y® World Class Market®

How to Tell What Your Child Has
During this sniffling season, we’re all too familiar with the common cold. It seems like, sooner or later, just about every kid will come home with a stuffy nose, constant sneezes and low-grade fever. While a cold is certainly irritating, undoubtedly frustrating and sadly long lasting (after the fever goes away in a day or two, a cold can linger for up to two weeks), it’s rarely serious. Its symptoms, however, can be similar to other common illnesses. How can you tell the difference between “just a cold” and a needed trip to the doctor? Here are some common illnesses, their symptoms and treatments.

Illness - Flu

Symptoms
Starts with cold-like symptoms but worsens rapidly with high fever, body aches, chills and fatigue; may also include nausea and vomiting.

Treatment
Plenty of rest and fluids, along with ibuprofen or acetaminophen for aches and fever if your child is uncomfortable. DO NOT give aspirin to a child with a flu. Bland diet for nausea or vomiting. The flu is generally caused by a virus and is not helped by antibiotics. Every child in your family over six months of
age should a have a yearly flu vaccine.

Illness - Pneumonia

Symptoms
Elevated fever with persistent coughing; rapid, difficult breathing and wheezing.

Treatment
See your doctor. Bacterial pneumonia can be treated with antibiotics. Severe cases may require hospitalization.

Illness - Respiratory Syncitial Virus (RSV)

Symptoms
In most children and adults, the symptoms of RSV are virtually indistinguishable from a cold. In babies, a condition called bronchiolitis may develop, characterized by persistent coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath.

Treatment
Any infant with wheezing should see a doctor. The doctor can perform a test to determine if your child has RSV. There is prescription medication that treats this illness. Severe cases will require hospitalization for oxygen and fluids. These are mostly children under one year of age or babies born prematurely.

Illness - Sinus Infection (Sinusitis)

Symptoms
Comes on after a cold. Nasal and sinus congestion worsen after a week or two and are accompanied by pressure and pain in the head and face and a thick, green or yellow nasal discharge. May also include a fever and cough.

Treatment
Call your doctor if cold symptoms last longer than a week.
Sinus infections are usually treated with antibiotics.

Call your doctor if your child has a cough that lasts more than two weeks, persistent vomiting or diarrhea, labored or rapid breathing, ear pain, throat pain or a fever that lasts more than 72 hours. Is there any way to help prevent these winter illnesses from invading your home? Short of sending your kids to school in a bubble, the best thing you can do is require and enforce frequent, thorough handwashing.

This article is intended for information purposes only and should not take the place of your personal physician’s advice.

Article was reviewed for accuracy by Larry Scherzer, M.D., a pediatrician with the University of Connecticut Health Center.