Four Seasons Pharmacist says | Don’t turn “nebulization” into “misnebulization”, please avoid the “six pitfalls” of nebulization for children at home!

Winter and spring are the peak seasons for respiratory infectious diseases. Some children cough so hard that they cry and snot, or even have dry coughs that won’t go away for a long time, which seriously affects their normal life and study. Parents are so nervous that they cannot wait for even a cough!

In order to make it easier for children to receive treatment, many parents will choose home nebulization inhalation treatment according to the doctor's prescription. Nebulization treatment can "reach the target directly" and "take effect quickly", and is one of the main treatments for respiratory diseases in children, especially preschoolers. Nebulization inhalation at home seems simple, but in fact there are many details required. Do all parents know the "medicine" points of nebulization for children at home? Yaowa reminds you to avoid the following "six pitfalls"!

The first pit: eating anything before and after atomization

During atomization, as the droplets enter the airway, they may cause the child to choke and cough; if the child is full before atomization, crying and making noise may cause nausea, vomiting, or even suffocation. Food residues in the mouth can also affect the inhalation of droplets into the respiratory tract, affecting the effect of drug treatment.

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It is best to avoid eating within 30 minutes before nebulization inhalation and during nebulization, and check whether there is food residue and secretions in the mouth (if any, they should be cleaned up in time).

The second pit: the longer the atomization time, the better

Some parents believe that the longer the nebulization treatment time, the better. Therefore, they often want to add more saline solution to increase the amount of liquid medicine, so as to achieve the purpose of extending the nebulization time. In fact, this is not the case. The conventional nebulization liquid volume for children is 3-4 ml each time, generally not more than 5 ml, and all the liquid medicine can be output within about 10 minutes. Each nebulization inhalation time can be controlled within 10-15 minutes. If the nebulization time is too long, the liquid medicine will be concentrated, the nebulized particles will increase, and the nebulization effect will become worse. Moreover, it will affect the compliance of the child, so that he or she will have a psychological rejection and resistance to nebulization.

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The maximum amount of liquid medicine added at a time is limited to the "MAX" mark engraved on the outside of the nebulizer cup. Unauthorized addition of saline or other liquid medicine may cause instability of other nebulized drugs and may also affect the osmotic pressure of the nebulized liquid medicine. Too high osmotic pressure will damage the child's lung tissue, while too low osmotic pressure will cause edema or even spasm of the child's airway mucosa.

The third pit: crying helps atomization

The correct way to inhale nebulization is to breathe in steadily and slowly through the mouth and exhale through the nose, which is conducive to the deposition of the drug in the lower airway. However, young children often cannot do this. Some parents let the children cry in order to achieve the effect of mouth-open nebulization. This is also undesirable! When the child cries, although the mouth is opened for inhalation, the breathing rate will increase at this time, which will reduce the particles of the drug solution deposited in the lungs. Children who use masks will also cause the mask to not fit well, affecting the effect of drug treatment.

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If the crying child still cannot cooperate quietly after comforting and distracting him/her, nebulization inhalation should be suspended. The child should resume inhalation when his/her emotions are stable and he/she is awake, or nebulization should be performed after he/she falls asleep.

The fourth pitfall : The harder you inhale, the better the effect

In order to achieve the effect of nebulized inhalation, some parents encourage their children to breathe in deeply and forcefully, thinking that this will inhale more liquid medicine into the lungs and achieve better results. This is also wrong. If you deliberately inhale forcefully, it will cause turbulence in the airflow, causing the particles of nebulized liquid medicine to collide with each other and settle in the large airways, resulting in a reduction in the amount of deposition in the lungs, affecting the effect of drug treatment.

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During nebulization, young children can use a mask to inhale in a quiet and awake state; children who can understand and perform standard operations can use a mouthpiece to inhale, inhale slowly and deeply through the mouth, and exhale through the nose (hold your breath for 1 to 2 seconds after inhaling, and then exhale slowly through the nose).

Pitfall 5: Nebulized drugs are more likely to enter the lungs when lying down

Some parents believe that when children lie flat for nebulization treatment, their airways are more unobstructed and the drugs can enter their lungs more easily. No! No! No! "Lying flat" is not a good posture for nebulization. On the contrary, when children lie flat, more drug particles will settle directly in the oropharynx, which will not only affect the effect of drug treatment, but also cause side effects of drugs in the oropharynx and other parts. In addition, lying flat will make it difficult for children to expel sputum, increasing the risk of airway obstruction. The nebulizer cup needs to be held vertically, and lying flat will make it easier for the nebulizer cup to tilt, causing the drug to splash out.

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During nebulization, the patient usually sits with the upper body upright (infants and young children can sit in a semi-sitting position). In this position, the child's diaphragm descends, which can increase gas exchange and help the nebulized drug to deposit in the lungs.

After the sixth pit is atomized, it is done.

After "troublesome" the child with nebulization, parents think that the treatment is over and there is nothing to worry about. Don't worry, there is still work to be done: First, the child should wash his face and rinse his mouth in time to prevent the residual liquid from being absorbed by the skin and causing side effects in the skin, oropharynx and other parts. Second, for children with sputum, they should be assisted to discharge the sputum, such as turning over and patting the back. Finally, don't forget to clean and dry the nebulizer after each use to prevent contamination and affect the treatment. It should also be disinfected and replaced regularly according to the requirements of the product.

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The "work" after atomization is also indispensable.

Although nebulizer therapy has many benefits, nebulizer drugs are prescription drugs and must be used under the guidance of a doctor and pharmacist. Parents must not choose drugs or change the dosage without authorization.