Newly minted parents feel in frontnewborn baby more responsibility. They in every possible way take care of him and protect him, protecting him from hypothermia and viral diseases. Meanwhile, some time after discharge from the hospital, a majority of babies still have a runny nose. Parents begin to panic: what to do, how and how to treat such a crumb, because he does not know how to blow his nose?
Before resorting to any meansdrug treatment, you need to start to find out the nature of this disease. Perhaps this is just a physiological runny nose of newborns. What kind of condition it is, what are its causes, and how to treat it, we will tell in detail in our article.
What is the physiological rhinitis of infants?
It is worth noting that only three types of rhinitis are distinguished: infectious (viral or bacterial), allergic and physiological. On the latter just talk more.
The physiological rhinitis in the newborn isthe appearance of mucous discharge from the nose of the child in the first weeks of his life. “It appeared without a reason,” they say about this type of rhinitis in the people. And indeed, the physiological rhinitis as suddenly appears, and suddenly disappears, even if not treated at all. As a rule, he does not deliver any discomfort to the baby, except in rare cases when the nose of the infant stops breathing well, which can cause his anxiety.
To understand the nature of this rhinitis, you need to understand the reasons for its occurrence.
Causes of the problem
The main reason for the appearance of physiologicalrhinitis in infants lies in the immaturity of the nasal mucosa. The fact is that in the womb the child was in the aquatic environment, where the aforementioned mucous membrane of his nose was constantly moistened. After his birth, the baby gets into completely different conditions, and he, his organs and systems need to adapt to live in them. While this did not happen, the mucous membrane requires additional moisture, and the baby’s body begins to produce a special substance. The physiological rhinitis in a newborn is a protective reaction of his body to external stimuli.
Since the cause of the described phenomenon lies not at all in viruses, allergens or bacteria, but in the immaturity of some organs and systems of the baby, it is also called neuro-vegetative.
The physiological rhinitis of newborns: symptoms
The reason for the appearance of rhinitis in infants became clear. But how to make sure that this is the very physiological rhinitis in the newborn? Symptoms of such rhinitis are as follows:
- the child is cheerful and cheerful, sleep and appetite are not disturbed;
- detachable mucus is transparent, has a liquid consistency;
- runny nose often accompanied by sneezing;
- breathing, as a rule, is not difficult (provided there is a sufficient level of humidity in the room);
- copious amounts of mucus (with dry air in the baby’s room) cause a crusting in the nose that makes breathing difficult;
- during sleep the child breathes through the mouth;
- during breastfeeding while lying down due to difficulties in breathing, the baby becomes restless and refuses to breast.
Thus, in some cases, physiological rhinitis still leads to a violation of the usual rhythm of life of the mother and the newborn.
Than to treat?
Применять какие-либо медикаменты, а особенно vasoconstrictor, for the treatment of physiological rhinitis is strictly prohibited. This can lead to the fact that the mucous membrane will dry up, and the next time the mucus will be produced even more than before. All treatment of the physiological rhinitis in newborns is limited only by instillation into the baby’s nose in case of emergency, a solution of sea salt. You can prepare it from a teaspoon of salt and a liter of boiled water. With the help of this solution, crusts formed as a result of dry air can be removed from the nose and thus facilitate breathing of the newborn.
In addition, the following means will help to alleviate the condition of the baby during this period of life:
- the humidifier should work in the room regularly; the humidity in the room where the baby sleeps should be maintained at 60%;
- the temperature of the air in the room should be 20-22 degrees; if the house is drowned too much, it will be appropriate to put special thermostats on the batteries;
- the room must be regularly ventilated;
- wet cleaning should be done regularly.
All these tools will help move the described state easily and quickly.
Duration
Consider the physiological rhinitis innewborn how much lasts. The immature mucous membrane of the nose of a newborn baby is finally formed only by the age of 2.5-3 months. On average, such rhinitis lasts no more than 10-14 days. This happens when parents do not interfere with the natural physiological process and do not try to dry the nasal mucosa with additional means, which is extremely rare. The most common situation is when a mother actively seeks to remove mucus from the spout, strongly drying it out.
In this case, the runny nose in infants continues.how much? It can take a very long time for a physiological runny nose of a newborn with irrational treatment. In some cases, such an unjustified use of drugs, especially vasoconstrictor drugs, can lead to chronic rhinitis, which can not be eliminated even in adulthood.
Hazard for newborns
In some cases, due to thoughtless actions, parental inaction, or for a number of other reasons, neurovegetative rhinitis leads to complications.
The physiological rhinitis in a newborn is dangerous as follows:
- The baby ceases to gain weight and even drops it, because, due to nasal congestion, it cannot suck the breast normally.
- With prolonged rhinitis, the nasal mucosa is so irritated that painful ulcers form on it.
- Due to the long runny nose of the babyinflammation of the ear and upper respiratory tract may develop. A newborn develops a cough, which still needs to be treated to avoid complications such as acute bronchitis and pneumonia.
Cough in the physiological rhinitis in children: how to treat
Before prescribing therapy for coughingdue to physiological rhinitis, determine the severity of complications. In most cases, it is a reflex reaction of the body to copious mucus in the common cold. How does this happen? In this case, the mucus just flows down the back of the nasopharynx, thereby interfering with the child, and he coughs it reflexively.
Cough during physiological rhinitisthe newborn is treated in this case by eliminating the cause of its occurrence, that is, removing mucus from the nose. In turn, in order to get rid of it, it is necessary to create favorable conditions in the room: to humidify the air, regularly ventilate the room and maintain the optimum temperature in it. In this case, the child must be under constant medical supervision until the complete disappearance of all symptoms of the disease.
The opinion of the pediatrician Komarovsky E. O.
Доктор Комаровский дает свою оценку physiological rhinitis. He emphasizes that it is strictly prohibited to treat rhinitis that occurs in the first trimester of a baby’s life with medical drugs. This is not a runny nose that is eliminated. It is associated with the adaptation of the nasal mucosa to the composition of the ambient air. Once this happens, rhinitis will pass by itself. That is why you should not treat the physiological rhinitis in the newborn.
Prevention
The considered type of rhinitis proceeds withoutfever and does not need medical treatment, but to avoid it also will not work. The task of the mother is to alleviate the baby’s condition during this period and to do everything possible so that it ends as quickly as possible and without consequences.
- maintain optimal temperature and humidity in the room;
- for additional moisture, bury the child’s nose with saline;
- timely clean the nose of dry crusts with cotton buds and flagella.
The prevention measures outlined above will help quicklyforget what a physiological rhinitis in the newborn. Meanwhile, it is worth remembering that the optimum temperature and humidification of the air are always necessary for the child to grow up healthy and active.
