When do you go to the doctor?

[chickadee77]

L is 6 months old and has been healthy, thankfully. But she has a pretty bad cough. She's had it for about a week, but it's gotten significantly worse today. Deep chest cough, loose, though. Maybe a little warm, but she also is teething (two teeth in one week!). Happy, smiling,  playing,  eating, sleeping pretty normally. 


When should we consider going in, or are we over-reacting as first-time parents? We called, and our pedi is out until January,  so it would likely be Urgent Care. Right now, I'm not too worried because she's acting fine, but should I be? 


We're doing cool-air mist, and will put Vicks on at her night feeding.

[barefootcontessa]

well if it continues to get worse over the next day or two I would take her in. Trouble is that a lot urgent care place do not see infants that young.

[mae141]

I would find a pedi to go to. DD had her 12 month checkup today, but she's been sick since Friday so it turned into a sick visit. She was acting happy but also clingy, and had a chest cough like your LO. The doctor was going to still do bloodwork/shots until she listened to DD's chest. She was pretty alarmed at how bad it sounded and made her do a nebulizer. Right away we could hear the difference in her cough/breathing. We got a prescription for an inhaler and have to go back in a few days. I feel bad that we didn't call sooner.

[smock]

I just took DD in for a wet cough, runny nose, and mild fever, and it turns out she has an ear infection. I never would have guessed because she didn't have a lot of the typical symptoms.

So I'd take your baby in to get checked out--even if just for the peace of mind. Our doc said the flu is really bad in our area right now and did a flu test--thankfully she doesn't have flu, which makes me feel a lot better!

[redpenmama]

DS has been sick way more than DD ever was, so I have been taking him in. I took him in when he was 9 months and just generally miserable: hand foot mouth. Took him in right after Thanksgiving for a very slight cough: strain A of the flu (despite a flu shot). So, this has only shown me that I should definitely call or go in if I'm concerned, and I'm one who tends to wait it out when it comes to doctors in general.

[smm5623]

My cut off is symptoms beyond 7-10 days. That's when they can start getting secondary bacterial illnesses like bronchitis, ear infections, etc. viral colds should get better in that time frame

[lulu21]

I am the FTM crazy person and bought J back to the ped because his cough sounded worse, but she told me his 'bad' cough was actually good. I guess because the gunk was breaking up, and he should be getting over it soon. We're also about a week into a pretty gross cold. I think we're finally getting over it

[kershnic]

I vote 7-10 days of sickness without a noticeable positive trend in healing, or consistent fever.   
Edited to add: Or acting miserable even with normal sick coddling, that would bump things sooner too.

Does your pedi not have a nurse line for you to ask questions like this? Mine does and that seems pretty common, so I'd start there.

But unless she has a fever (real fever, over 100.4 measured rectally) I wouldn't bother going in at this point.