Is It a Cold or an Allergy? Should You Call Your Primary Care Provider?
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Health Tip of the Week Your child has a runny nose and a headache. You are worried it might be more than just a cold, but you’re not sure. How do you tell the difference between a cold, allergies and a chest infection? Should you call your primary care provider?
Juhee Lee, MD, an attending physician with the Division of Allergy and Immunology at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), offers guidance to parents on:
“Ask yourself a few key questions,” says Dr. Lee. “The answers can help you figure out what might be causing the congestion and what you can do to help your child.”
If your child is 3 months old or younger, call your primary care provider whenever your child has nasal or chest congestion.
If your child is more than 4 months old, call your primary care provider if your child:
Seek emergency care if your child:
Treatments are different depending on the cause of the congestion. Your child’s primary care provider can tell you what steps to take to relieve symptoms and help your child get better.
Your child’s pediatrician can refer you to an appropriate specialist if necessary, depending on how serious your child’s condition is and what is causing the health problems. Depending on the condition, your child may need to see more than one specialist. Specialists who help with medical issues related to congestion include:
Immunologists, who diagnose and treat immune deficiencies, which are rare conditions that can predispose patients to infections. Chronic nasal congestion that is accompanied by recurrent infections such as ear infections, sinus infections, and pneumonia may be a sign of an underlying immune deficiency.
Contributed by: Juhee Lee, MD
Categories: Health Tip of the Week
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