How a Pediatric Nebulizer Help Treat Your Child’s Respiratory Issues?

The health and needs of a child are the utmost priority of every parent. From a slight cough to body aches, you know when your child is ill. However, having a stuffy nose and watery eyes are not necessarily the signs of simple cough or fever. This could be the symptoms of asthma or any other respiratory disorder that may cause the need for breathing assistance. In certain conditions, you may need to get a nebulizer for your child. 

You might have seen kids wearing plastic masks around their faces when they visit the pediatric urgent care clinic. They are called nebulizers and the process of assisting a child in breathing properly is known as nebulization. A nebulizer is basically a special device that converts liquid medication into a fine mist which can be easily inhaled by the child so that it reaches the body and absorbed quickly for instant effects.

How Does a Nebulizer Work?

This breathing machine works a little similar to inhalers by directly administering medicine into the lungs for treating respiratory issues. If your child is too young or not comfortable to use an inhaler, a pediatric nebulizer makes the treatment a lot easier. In addition to being easier for inhaling, the nebulizer enables medicine to deplete faster into the lungs, enter the bloodstream, and provide immediate relief.

When a baby breathes in the mist from a nebulizer, the medicine goes deeper into the lungs to make breathing easier. Some of the medical conditions that may require a nebulizer include allergies, chronic bronchitis, upper respiratory tract infection, and COPD.

Signs Your Child Needs a Nebulizer

Children are more prone to asthma or respiratory disorders due to different daily or seasonal triggers. It is best to talk to your pediatric walk-in doctor as soon as you notice any of the following symptoms in your child.

●        Rapid or difficulty breathing

●        Chest pain

●        Shortness of breath

●        Coughing

●        Delayed recovery from Bronchitis

●        Wheezing

Your doctor may prescribe nebulizer for a breathing treatment to help prevent asthma attacks or lungs damage caused to your child.

Conditions That Nebulizers Treat

Doctors of the best walk-in clinics recommend nebulizers to help treat chronic conditions in children like asthma and other respiratory issues. Some common medical conditions that are best treated using nebulizers include:

●        Pneumonia - This severe illness may be linked to inflamed lungs and include symptoms like shortness of breath and fever.

●        Cystic Fibrosis - Infants with this genetic disorder may have difficulty breathing as it causes thick mucus to build up and block the airways.

●        Respiratory Syncytial Virus - This condition causes mild, cold-like symptoms that might not be severe in older children but can develop inflammation of the small airways among infants.

●        Croup - It happens when the child gets cold due to one of the viruses, which swell airways and leads to a runny nose, cough, or fever.

●        Epiglottitis - It is the result of the bacteria that cause pneumonia. In this condition, the airways swell and cause abnormal, high-pitched sound on breathing.

Types of Medications for Nebulization

There are broadly two types of medications that doctors of pediatric urgent care clinic use for nebulization. The non-medicated liquid is used when a child has a dry nose and nebulization is needed to gently wet mucous membrane and reduce the dryness using saline liquid. The medicated liquid is preferred when a kid has asthma, rhinitis or similar disease. Nebulization can be taken using medicated liquids that contain corticosteroids, bronchodilators, or other chemicals required for treatment.

Types of Nebulizers

There are different types of nebulizers available for nebulization treatment ranging from mobile, stationary and ultrasonic nebulizers to jet and mesh nebulizers. Your urgent care specialist uses the best nebulizer based on the specific condition of your child.

Breathing Treatment Using Nebulizers

The steps of preparing and using a nebulizer depend on its specific type. However, general nebulization steps advised and used by urgent care doctors for breathing treatment are as follows:

●        Before using a nebulizer, make sure that the air filter is clean and dry.

●        Plug in the machine and place the medication ampule in the medicine container of the nebulizer. You may also mix a few medicines together using sterile water or saline solution as advised by your family doctor.

●        Connect one end of the tubing to the nebulizer and other to the cup of the medication.

●        Clean the facial mask and connect it to the top part of the nebulizer.

●        Hold the mask to the face of your child and turn on the nebulizer until the treatment bubbles and mist becomes less noticeable inside the mask.

●        Clean the nebulizer and mask after every use.

Nebulizer treatments are safe and effective ways to help your infant deal with breathing problems. However, your child can have the opposite reaction following the treatment if not treated professionally and with adequate knowledge. It is best to visit Artisans of Medicine, the leading clinic of pediatric urgent care in Sunset Park, Bay Ridge, and Brooklyn. Schedule a visit to our after-hours clinic today!