Could My Child’s Runny Nose be Something More?
- Sunday, September 13, 2009, 12:33
- Asthma
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- Andrew:
- Let’s talk about a proactive mental toolkit for someone who has rhinitis nasal issues. [Should] they open a discussion with their doctor and say, “Could it be something more? I’ve never been diagnosed with asthma [so] should we look into that? Yeah, I’ve had heartburn, but I’ve been taking an over-the-counter thing for that. Is there more we should do to control the whole picture?”
- Dr. Lieberman:
- They should be very proactive. And people, for example, who have to regularly take Rolaids or Tums should bring this up with their physician for several reasons. One reason is that the symptoms they wouldn’t ordinarily think were related, such as postnasal drainage or recurrent hoarseness, can be due to reflux. In addition, that reflux can aggravate asthma. If you do have asthma or symptoms of rhinitis, then it becomes even more important.
- Andrew:
- What are the signs [of] whether you need to seek treatment (not just try something over the counter), bring it up with your primary care doctor or even seek a specialist?
- Dr. Lieberman:
- Well, I think that the level of discomfort is an excellent guide to some extent. For most people, the discomfort itself will lead them to a physician. That is, are they having sneezing, nasal itching, postnasal drainage, congestion that aggravates them?
In stoic people, it becomes a little more difficult. These are the people that I’m [more] worried about. They neglect the symptoms of rhinitis [such as] nasal congestion. They don’t sleep well at night, and their companions complain of their snoring. And they don’t feel quite alert when they wake up in the morning, and their driving skills are impaired.
These people may say, “Well, it’s only a little runny nose,” or “So, my nose is stopped up, and isn’t everyone else’s?”
And the answer to that is, “No – it isn’t true in everyone else.” And having nasal symptoms can exert effects beyond their perception of their own comfort.
If I were advising people, [I'd say] not to deal with any form of upper respiratory tract symptoms without seeking help. What you don’t understand is that the symptoms themselves can have effects on other aspects of your health that you’re not aware of, or you may not notice.
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