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What to do when your child has a cold and is having
Difficulty Breathing
Your child could have bronchiolitis
Bronchiolitis is a viral infection that affects our breathing.
The infection causes the airways to swell and fill with mucus.
Many viruses can cause Bronchiolitis, but the most common is Respiratory Syncytial Virus or RSV.
RSV is most common in the winter months.
Symptoms
Common symptoms include:
Fever
Runny Nose
Coughing or Wheezing
Dehydration (no wet diapers)
Symptoms are worse in the first 5 days and can last up to 10 days.
In some children, coughing may continue for a few weeks.
Symptoms other parents saw
"At first he just had a typical cold, with a runny nose. But he was still pretty energetic. The next day he had a cough and then he started wheezing."
"She was eating a lot less and would wake up just to cough. Her nose needed to be cleaned out a lot!"
"You could see how hard it was for them to breathe. Their tummy was going in and out so fast."
"I always knew our kids would get sick, but I thought it would be a one or two day thing. This lasted the whole week."
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Risk Factors
Some factors can make it more likely that your child will get sick, and can increase the severity of disease.
Call your health care provider if your child is showing signs of bronchiolitis and has any of the following risk factors:
• Was born prematurely
• Is under 3 months of age
• Has a history of heart problems
• Has a history of lung problems
How to help your child
Here's what you can do!
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Emergency Department
At Home
Confused or Unsure?
When to visit the emergency department
Seek emergency care if your child has the following symptoms:
Blue lips
Difficulty Breathing (fast breathing, wheezing, skin sucking in around neck and between ribs)
Dehydration (dry mouth, sunken eyes, crying with no tears, no pee/no wet diapers, sunken fontanelle (soft spot on baby's head))
Under 3 months old with a fever
Sleepy
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Treatment
Because bronchiolitis is a viral infection, antibiotics will not help. In most cases, children will recover on their own if they have no other infections and are kept hydrated.
Some children with severe bronchiolitis may need to stay in the hospital for a few days to get oxygen and extra fluids.
Useful links
My Health Alberta – Bronchiolitis
HEAL – Cough, Cold, and Wheeze
This infographic was brought to you by ARCHE, ECHO and TREKK
This research was funded by the Networks of Centres of Excellence and the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation through the Women and Children’s Health Research Institute.
