The poor health of the child always causes anxiety among parents. Snot in infants is no exception. A runny nose can occur quite often and gives the baby significant discomfort.
To determine what exactly provoked this condition, you need to seek help from a doctor and conduct a diagnosis. The doctor will tell you how to properly treat the child and what actions to take to facilitate the well-being of the baby.
Causes of occurrence
There are many factors that can trigger rhinitis in infants. These include such as:
- Viral infections.
- Hot and dry air.
- Teething.
- Allergy.
If transparent snot appears in the baby, the causes may be associated with viral infections. This is the most common symptom of the initial stage of a cold. Initially, perspiration and dryness in the nose and nasopharynx are observed, the child often sneezes. After a while, nasal congestion appears and only the next day a runny nose occurs. This symptom can be with infectious mononucleosis, whooping cough, viral infections. In this case, the risk of complications increases.
Transparent snot in the baby can be with teething. In addition, there is abundant salivation. This is due to the active blood supply to the gums and nasopharynx. Quite often, infants snot due to allergies. In this case, you need to eliminate allergens and watch the baby.
If the room has dry and hot air, then the mucous membrane triggers self-defense methods and liquid mucus begins to stand out from the passages, which in texture resembles water.
Main symptoms
According to the classification, there are several types of discharge from the nose. Depending on the type of mucus, there may be various symptoms of the course of the disease. Snot in infants are:
- transparent
- white and thick;
- yellow or yellow green;
- with small streaks of blood.
Transparent snot in infants are physiological in nature and are considered a symptom of an active restructuring in the body. At the end of the period of adaptation to new conditions, the snot passes independently. After a couple of months, the baby's health is normalized without the use of medications.
Transparent snot in infants may indicate a viral infection. In this case, you need to consult a doctor who will be able to determine the cause of the appearance of the discharge, as well as to choose the optimal course of treatment.
If the snot is viscous, then this may indicate a beginning respiratory disease. After a while, the child's temperature rises, swelling of the nasal mucosa appears and breathing is difficult.
Yellow-green or green discharge appears during the course of the pathological process. According to Dr. Komarovsky, a runny nose in a baby with green snot is considered the final phase of rhinitis. With the mucus, dead bacteria and viruses come out.
Inflammation does not stop over time and the risk of complications increases. After a while, sinusitis or sinusitis begins to develop. They necessarily require specialized medical treatment. Swelling of the nasal mucosa in the baby leads to a deterioration in appetite, anxiety, difficulty breathing, anxiety, and poor sleep.
Discharges with streaks of blood indicate a serious inflammatory process that occurs due to the fragility of the walls of blood vessels. Also, such a violation can be triggered by factors such as:
- insufficient vitamin C in the body;
- mechanical injury to the nasal mucosa;
- a sharp increase in pressure;
- excessive use of vasoconstrictor drugs.
To determine the main symptoms and causes of a runny nose in an infant, you need to visit a doctor for diagnosis and treatment.
Diagnostics
If the doctor has doubts about the fact that transparent snot in the baby appeared due to natural physiological reasons, then a laboratory study is required. For this, a nasal swab is taken and examined under a microscope.
Depending on which cells are found more, the cause of the common cold is determined. If lymphocytes predominate, then this is a viral infection, and if neurophiles, then a bacterial infection. In the case of a large number of eosinophils in the smear, the diagnosis is allergy.
Features of the common cold in the baby
If the nose of the baby is stuffed, what to do - this question worries very many parents, since babies still do not know how to blow their nose and this is the main difficulty. The kid can not complain or say that his nose does not breathe.
The baby is generally in a supine position, making breathing with a stuffy nose even more difficult. The kid can not independently remove dried crusts. In addition, he is not able to call for help, even if he can not breathe at all. As a result, the onset of sudden death syndrome is possible.
That is why parents should definitely know how to help the child if he has a runny nose. It is important to be especially attentive to a sick baby.
Treatment
Transparent snot in a baby without temperature should be treated immediately after their appearance, until a complication begins to develop. Liquid secretions that flow from the baby’s nose do not impede breathing and contain substances that fight the virus. It is important not to let the snot dry.
It is necessary to provide cool and humid air in the room. This contributes to a faster recovery. Humidity should be measured with a hygrometer. It is advisable to purchase an ultrasonic humidifier.
The amount of fluid in the body largely affects the consistency of mucus. Therefore, if the baby is breastfed, you need to offer him breasts as often as possible. If the child is an artificial person, then during the acute course of the disease it is necessary to reduce the concentration of the mixture. In addition, the baby should drink plenty of water.
To keep the mucus liquid, you need to instill a saline solution in the nose. For this, special solutions are also suitable, for example, such as Aqualor, Aquamaris. To instill a nose, you need to use a pipette or syringe without a needle. Do not use the spray, as it can damage the auditory tube. It is necessary to instill saline solution every 3-4 hours.
Even with all these measures, a lot of mucus is formed in the nose, especially after the baby’s sleep. It is noticeable that the child has difficulty breathing and he grunts with his nose. It is very important to know how to clean the nose of a newborn to remove excess mucus. For this, nasal aspirators are used. They can be mechanical or electronic. The simplest are completely ineffective, since it is difficult to remove thick mucus with their help. Therefore, it is better to choose more modern models, but they should be silent.
To facilitate the removal of thick snot, you need to instill a saline solution in the nose and suck off the discharge with this liquid.
Drug therapy
If the nose is stuffed in the baby, what should be done by the doctor. Pediatricians recommend using the most gentle methods aimed at eliminating the symptoms and the causes of the pathological process. The doctor may prescribe:
- vasoconstrictor;
- antiviral;
- antihistamines;
- antipyretic drugs;
- means for washing the nose based on sea water.
Treatment of viral rhinitis should begin immediately after its appearance. In this case, the snot passes quite quickly. In addition to creating a favorable environment, you need to use nasal drops, which are selected depending on the manifestation of rhinitis. Preparations for the common cold are divided into several types, namely:
- moisturizers;
- antiseptics;
- drops with antibiotics.
You cannot use these drugs at the same time. Typically, pediatricians prescribe moisturizing drops along with vasoconstrictors and antiseptics. Antibacterial agents are used only in the case of bacterial origin of the common cold, which is confirmed after mucosal bacterial inoculation.
Vasoconstrictive drops will help reduce swelling of the nasal mucosa, remove congestion and facilitate breathing. Their use is justified at the stage of formation of a large amount of transparent mucus. In the treatment of rhinitis in infants, you can use "Nazol Baby", "Nazivin", "Snoop", "Otrivin Baby." It is important to know how to instill a baby’s nose with vasoconstrictors. You can apply them up to 3 times a day during the first 5 days of the course of the disease. Prolonged instillation of the nose can be addictive.
The use of drops with antiviral components is justified in the first three days of the course of infectious rhinitis. These agents prevent further proliferation of viruses, which helps to reduce unpleasant symptoms and accelerates the healing process. When treating infants, you can use tools such as Derinat, Grippferon, Genferon. All these tools contribute to increasing immunity and overall body resistance. That is why they are used as a prophylaxis of the common cold during colds.
Drops with antiseptic components are distinguished by anti-inflammatory properties. They are recommended for use if green or yellow discharge appears. Babies are prescribed such drugs as Protargol, Pinosol, Miramistin.
The drug "Pinosol" is an oily solution made on a plant basis. These drops help soften the nasal mucosa, soften dried crusts and eliminate pathogens. It is necessary to drip funds for infants 2-3 times a day for 1 drop.
The drug "Protargol" contains silver ions, which have an antiseptic effect. You can buy them only in those pharmacies that prepare drugs to order.
A good antiseptic drug is Miramistin. It destroys the membranes of viruses, bacteria and other pathogens that trigger the onset of rhinitis. You can instill these drops at any stage of the disease, 1-2 drops in each nasal passage.
Many doctors prescribe "Etericide" in the nose of babies. This drug belongs to antibacterial agents. Due to its natural components, it is completely non-toxic, and also has a mild effect. Drops "Etericide" in the nose are instilled in children 2-3 drops daily.
In the treatment of allergic rhinitis, contact with the allergen should be limited. Of the drugs used antihistamines, in particular, such as Parlazin or Fenistil. The latter is suitable for use from the first month of a child's life. Dosage depends on the weight of the baby.
Rinse nose
The baby cannot blow her nose herself, which is why she needs the help of her parents. To facilitate the passage of mucus, it is recommended to wash the nasal cavity with solutions made on the basis of sea water. This helps ease breathing.
Ready-made saline solutions or prepared by yourself can be used. The procedure is performed using a pipette. Initially, you need to lay the baby on his back, turn his head to the side and rinse the nasal passage. Mucus is removed by an aspirator.
Folk remedies
Many parents are interested in how to treat transparent snot in infants with folk remedies, since they believe that they are the safest. Dr. Komarovsky does not recommend the use of such techniques, since they can cause serious harm to the nasal mucosa. Some plants also trigger allergies.
However, in the absence of contraindications, it is possible to wash the nasal cavity with infusion of chamomile. Take 1 tbsp. l plants and pour 1 tbsp. boiling water. You can dig in the already filtered infusion of 2 drops up to 4 times a day.
What you can not drip into the nose of a baby
Some mothers instill breast milk in the nose of a newborn, as they believe that it contains useful substances that help to cope with the disease much faster. However, this is completely wrong. Breast milk is an ideal medium for the reproduction of viruses and bacteria. These activities will not only not help, but can even do harm.
It is forbidden to drip fruit juices and onion infusion into the nose, as they can provoke a burn of the baby’s delicate mucosa. Oxolinic ointment is not used, since it has insufficient effectiveness and does not have a pronounced therapeutic effect.
Inhalations with a runny nose are carried out using a nebulizer. Steam inhalation can cause mucosal burns. In case of a viral or physiological rhinitis, the use of vasoconstrictor drops can lead to the opposite effect and cause severe swelling of the mucosa, respectively, the nose will block. You can not drip antibiotics for a child without the appointment of a doctor.
Possible complications
If you do not treat snot in a child, then the risk of complications increases sharply. The baby is gaining weight very slowly, hypoxia is noted, which leads to anxiety and lethargy. The baby does not sleep well, the intensity of the immune system decreases. If you do not treat snot in a child, then the risk of diseases such as:
- pneumonia;
- otitis;
- tracheitis;
- laryngitis;
- bronchitis;
- bacterial conjunctivitis.
Shortness of breath can provoke hypoxia, which adversely affects the state of the respiratory and cardiovascular system. As a result, memory is disturbed, the perception of the world around us decreases, and the reaction slows down.
Prophylaxis
In order to avoid the occurrence of mucous secretions and difficulty breathing, it is necessary to carry out comprehensive prevention, namely:
- carry out regular wet cleaning;
- ventilate the room to maintain optimal temperature;
- humidify the air.
After being in crowded places during the outbreak of respiratory infections, you need to rinse the baby’s nose with a pipette. Strengthening the immune system will help walks in the fresh air.