Albuterol for cough and wheezing?

Question

My son has a cold. Symptoms are: cough, runny nose(clear), no fever, good spirits and some slight wheezing which started yesterday. He has had the cough since Friday. I called the Dr Sat and asked what I might could give him to help him sleep, I was told Dimetapp for infants. We used that and it did help him sleep better but when he started wheezing yesterday we called back and they called him in some Albuterol. I didn't give him any last night because it was late and I didn't want him to be up(it says it can cause wakefullness). I did give it to him this morning (it didn't seem to affect him as far as his sleep, he took an hour and 15 min nap) and I was just curious if anyone has every had a similar situtation and did the albuterol help, did it hae any affect on your childs sleep? I'm really not big on giving meds for a cold but the wheezing bothered me. I have done some research and know that it is commonly used for asthma.

My son is 6 months old

For- Love My Baby- you never give honey to a child under the age of 1. It can cause botulism. My Dr knows how old my son is and has been practicing medicine for a long time (I use to see him as a child) so I'm sure he knows how much is too much. (and I don't mean to sound sarcastic, I just trust my Dr)The Rx is 1/4 tsp every 8 hours.
I have been running his humidifier non stop since Friday night and giving him baths with J & J vapor bath every night.

Answer 1

Yes, as an infant my baby was on albuterol to open the lungs and stop the wheezing. It didn't affect her too much as far as wakefulness. She slept more sound and could breathe normally. It helped tremendously. UP until about age 3 or 4 I gave it to her whenever the wheezing returned and it cleared it up... It's used for wheezing and shortness of breath in asthma patients. My child is 8 now..... never had a problem with it. In fact, even now when she has a cold and is wheezing I give her a few sprays from her pump. She doesn't have asthma but it works. It's a common med, no worries!

Answer 2

Yes it's prmary use is for asthama, which has wheezing as a major symptom. It may be he has a minor case of that. My two oldest sons both wheeze when they get colds and albuterol does the trick. I've never noticed any changes in sleep with them while they take it.

Edit: one of them is 8 now, the other 2, but we've done this with them both since they were babies. I think the first time I used albuterol on my oldest he was about 3 months.

Answer 3

Albuterol For Cough

Answer 4

2

Answer 5

IMPORTANT!!!!
Alot of people dont know this thats why Im going to tell you about it.
Doctors are paid to sell prescriptions, sales associates actually go to the doctors offices and offer them a cut for selling there product. Your son probably doesnt even need albuterol my daughter had a horrible cold that ended with wheezing and coughing....but she got over it. Im not saying that medicine isnt good... its just that I dont believe that we need it for EVERY LITTLE THING..I mean what did they do when kids were wheezing in the 1800's?? I personally wouldnt givce him the albuterol.. just let him get over it himself.. maybe give him a nice warm bath before bedtime, put a humidifier in the room.. there are other methods then meds.. good luck hope your little angel gets to feeling better sooner then later!


I just had a thought.. my daughter didnt start wheezing "bad" unitl I used J and J vapor bath...it does say on the label may cause breathing problems.....maybe it was the vapor bath????!!!

Answer 6

I've had asthma for 20 years and have used albuterol. In my experiance it does give me a "buzz", but not being able to breath is very tiring and when you weeze your not breathing as well as you should be (even if it is just from a cold); so when i have the albuterol even though i get a "buzz" i actually sleep better because i can breath again. He may actually sleep more for a little bit because of being worn out from not breathing. But also keep in mind that everyone responds differently to every medication, just because i am sensitive to certain side effects doesn't mean that your son will be sensitive to the same ones.

Answer 7

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Albuterol for cough and wheezing?
My son has a cold. Symptoms are: cough, runny nose(clear), no fever, good spirits and some slight wheezing which started yesterday. He has had the cough since Friday. I called the Dr Sat and asked what I might could give him to help him sleep, I was told Dimetapp for infants. We used that and it...

Answer 8

my 4 month old is currently on Albuterol. He is getting the treatment about 4 times a day. shortly after he has it he does get the shakes for about 30 minutes but it hasn't seemed to affect his sleept at all. It is commonly used for asthma but it also helps in breaking up of the congestion that is in a babies chest without having to use an expectorant. it has helped my son quite a bit. he has been coughing up the mucus that was causing him to wheeze and he can breathe easier after each treatment.

Answer 9

I've been asthmatic for about 13 years, and have been on albuterol for instant relief from asthma attacks. I've never known for it to be prescribed for coughing and wheezing though. I have noticed though that after taking my inhaler that I've sort of had a buzz afterwards.

Answer 10

The side effects will differ from one child to another (Or one adult to another for that matter) What is said to be a possible side effect is mentioned even if its a 1 in 100 chance.
Diphenhydramine in triaminic night time says it may cause wakefullness but really it is the same ingredient in gravol and some sleep aids for adults. The chance it will keep him awake is small if you didn't notice it in the day time.
My mom had to give it to some foster children with bad colds and wheezing and we noticed no change in behavior or sleep.