Persistent Cough in Children — Normal or a Warning Sign? Pediatrician's Advice
17 April 2025
Often, parents, having heard their child cough for weeks, begin to worry a lot and forget about a very important fact: cough is not an enemy, but a friend, one of the body's protective reflexes.Coughing helps clear the respiratory tract of foreign particles, such as bacteria or accumulated mucus.However, no matter how "harmless" the cough is, if it persists for 2-3 weeks, it is necessary to consult a pediatrician and re-evaluate the child's condition.
As is known, the main cause of cough is respiratory viral infections - self-limited seasonal viral diseases transmitted by airborne droplets (when coughing or sneezing, touching household items or toys of an infected child). They usually begin in the fall and continue until the end of spring (or, as they say, until the end of the school year).
In addition to coughing, respiratory viral infections are often accompanied by the following symptoms: runny nose, fever (38° and above), chills and tremors, headache, muscle pain, a lump in the throat, and sometimes vomiting or diarrhea.
A lingering cough after an infection can persist even after the main symptoms have disappeared, for up to several weeks.