Question
A three-year-old child developed a cold and fever after going out dressed lightly during the change of weather. The child’s face turned rosy. The parent is considering whether to take the child to the hospital for a check-up or just let the child rest at home.
Answer
Coughing is a common symptom of the respiratory system in children, and almost all lung diseases are accompanied by coughing. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the pathological changes of pediatric cough mainly occur in the lungs. If a child has a long-term loss of appetite, weak spleen and stomach function, decreased digestive and absorptive ability, leading to insufficient nutritional intake, which in turn reduces resistance. In this situation, if the child is attacked by wind-cold external pathogens, it is easy to trigger a cold, often accompanied by symptoms such as nasal congestion, runny nose, and copious phlegm coughing. It is recommended that parents take the child to the hospital for a detailed examination to determine what kind of bacteria is causing it, and then carry out appropriate treatment based on the examination results.