Croup Contagious? - Page 2

[newmothermary]

This should be a non-issue as far as I'm concerned. Your children are at a good risk of contacting croup should you go to this party, so you don't. I don't see a problem here.

[Renee Green]

Is croup contagious?

• Yes. Croup is contagious.
• Croup can be spread through sneezing and coughing. Germs can be picked up from tabletops and fingers.
• Children with croup are most contagious during the first days of illness.

How is croup treated?

• If your child is having trouble breathing, there are simple things you can do to help.
• There should be no smoking in the house if your child has croup.
• Stepping out into the cool night air may help your child breathe.
• Putting a vaporizer or humidifier in your child's room may help him breathe.
• Put the humidifier close enough to your child so that his hair gets damp after a few minutes. If it is a warm-mist humidifier, make sure it's far enough away from him so that he won't get burned.
• You can also run hot water in the shower and close the bathroom door. Sit with your child in the steamy room for 10-15 minutes.
• Keep your child calm. It will be harder for him to breathe if he is upset.
• You can clear a stuffy nose with salt-water drops (1 teaspoon of table salt in one cup water). Gently suction out the nose with an ear bulb every few hours.
• Your child should drink plenty of clear liquids.
• Quiet play is best. Running around can make the cough worse.
• You may want to sleep in your child's room to keep an eye on his breathing.

How long does croup last?

• Croup usually lasts for 2 to 3 days.
• A wet cough with mucous may last for 1 or 2 weeks.
• Infants and children may return to school or daycare if they feel better and don't have a temperature.
• You don't need to keep your child home from school because of a lasting cough.

How can croup be prevented?

• Little can be done to prevent the spread of infection in your house.
• Children who come into contact with croup will probably get a sore throat or cough.
• Coughing helps get infected mucous out of your child's airways. Do not use cough medicines to stop the cough.

When should I call the doctor?

• Go to the emergency room if your child is drooling or has trouble breathing for more than 20 minutes.
• Go to the emergency room if your child has blue lips, sucks in his chest with each breath, or is losing consciousness.
• Go to the emergency room or call the doctor if you believe something is caught in your child's throat.
• Go to the emergency room or call the doctor if your child is breathing very fast.
• Call the doctor if your child has an earache, fitful sleeping, or becomes increasingly grumpy.

Call the doctor if your child has a fever over 104 degrees F (or 40 degrees C) or a fever that lasts more than 5 days.

Quick Answers

• Croup is an illness of the respiratory system.
• Croup can be caused by either a viral or bacterial infection.
• Croup can cause a barking cough and troubled breathing.
• Croup is contagious. It can be spread through sneezing, coughing, and direct contact.
• Inhaling moist air can help your child breathe easier. Use a humidifier, steam the bathroom, or take your child in the night air to help him breathe.
• Croup usually lasts for 2 to 3 days.
• Children who come into contact with croup will probably get a sore throat or cough.
• Call the doctor if you have questions or concerns about your child's illness.

References

[Renee Green]

Is croup contagious?

• Yes. Croup is contagious.
• Croup can be spread through sneezing and coughing. Germs can be picked up from tabletops and fingers.
• Children with croup are most contagious during the first days of illness.

How is croup treated?

• If your child is having trouble breathing, there are simple things you can do to help.
• There should be no smoking in the house if your child has croup.
• Stepping out into the cool night air may help your child breathe.
• Putting a vaporizer or humidifier in your child's room may help him breathe.
• Put the humidifier close enough to your child so that his hair gets damp after a few minutes. If it is a warm-mist humidifier, make sure it's far enough away from him so that he won't get burned.
• You can also run hot water in the shower and close the bathroom door. Sit with your child in the steamy room for 10-15 minutes.
• Keep your child calm. It will be harder for him to breathe if he is upset.
• You can clear a stuffy nose with salt-water drops (1 teaspoon of table salt in one cup water). Gently suction out the nose with an ear bulb every few hours.
• Your child should drink plenty of clear liquids.
• Quiet play is best. Running around can make the cough worse.
• You may want to sleep in your child's room to keep an eye on his breathing.

How long does croup last?

• Croup usually lasts for 2 to 3 days.
• A wet cough with mucous may last for 1 or 2 weeks.
• Infants and children may return to school or daycare if they feel better and don't have a temperature.
• You don't need to keep your child home from school because of a lasting cough.

How can croup be prevented?

• Little can be done to prevent the spread of infection in your house.
• Children who come into contact with croup will probably get a sore throat or cough.
• Coughing helps get infected mucous out of your child's airways. Do not use cough medicines to stop the cough.

When should I call the doctor?

• Go to the emergency room if your child is drooling or has trouble breathing for more than 20 minutes.
• Go to the emergency room if your child has blue lips, sucks in his chest with each breath, or is losing consciousness.
• Go to the emergency room or call the doctor if you believe something is caught in your child's throat.
• Go to the emergency room or call the doctor if your child is breathing very fast.
• Call the doctor if your child has an earache, fitful sleeping, or becomes increasingly grumpy.

Call the doctor if your child has a fever over 104 degrees F (or 40 degrees C) or a fever that lasts more than 5 days.

Quick Answers

• Croup is an illness of the respiratory system.
• Croup can be caused by either a viral or bacterial infection.
• Croup can cause a barking cough and troubled breathing.
• Croup is contagious. It can be spread through sneezing, coughing, and direct contact.
• Inhaling moist air can help your child breathe easier. Use a humidifier, steam the bathroom, or take your child in the night air to help him breathe.
• Croup usually lasts for 2 to 3 days.
• Children who come into contact with croup will probably get a sore throat or cough.
• Call the doctor if you have questions or concerns about your child's illness.

References

[Lisa1970]

I don't even know if croup is contagious. Through the years, when one of my children got it, none of the others did. It was always just that one child, not the others. I would actually not worry about it at all.

[katelove]

Originally Posted by Renee Green 

How is croup treated?

• If your child is having trouble breathing, there are simple things you can do to help.
• There should be no smoking in the house if your child has croup.
• Stepping out into the cool night air may help your child breathe.
• Putting a vaporizer or humidifier in your child's room may help him breathe.
• Put the humidifier close enough to your child so that his hair gets damp after a few minutes. If it is a warm-mist humidifier, make sure it's far enough away from him so that he won't get burned.
• You can also run hot water in the shower and close the bathroom door. Sit with your child in the steamy room for 10-15 minutes.

This is out of date I'm afraid. There is no evidence that steam or humidification helps croup and it isn't recommended anymore.

Croup is contagious as some PPs have mentioned. The most contagious period is the first couple of days of fever and cough. 

OP, I think you're right not to take your kids to the party. I think I'd do the same thing in your position.

[lovepickles]

Originally Posted by katelove 

This is out of date I'm afraid. There is no evidence that steam or humidification helps croup and it isn't recommended anymore.

Croup is contagious as some PPs have mentioned. The most contagious period is the first couple of days of fever and cough. 

OP, I think you're right not to take your kids to the party. I think I'd do the same thing in your position.

Having a baby gasp for air be relieved by a steaming bathroom is evidence enough for me. The humidity helps a great deal. This year my friend who is a maternity nurse had a baby and when her daughter was suffering from croup she steamed to relieve the symptoms. An inflamed and congested airway benefits greatly from steam. I have well informed doctors and it is still recommended.

Why all this activity in an old thread?
 

[IngaAnne]

Originally Posted by lovepickles 

Having a baby gasp for air be relieved by a steaming bathroom is evidence enough for me. The humidity helps a great deal. This year my friend who is a maternity nurse had a baby and when her daughter was suffering from croup she steamed to relieve the symptoms. An inflamed and congested airway benefits greatly from steam. I have well informed doctors and it is still recommended.

I've been told by several different sources to use cold air for croup (also well-informed individuals). It's better at reducing the inflammation (hot can cause swelling). It seems like a cool mist (rather than a hot steam) would be best, it's just obviously harder to make cold steam with just a shower. When my son had croup, we tried the steamy bathroom prior to contacting anyone. However, when I got an emergency nurse from the children's hospital on the phone, she told us cold air was much better. At the ER of another hospital, they also told us to use cold air. At our followup visit with the ped, she also told us cold air was best.