Hiccups in a child: the causes and how to get rid quickly

Hiccups in childrena common phenomenon. In a child, every hypothermia, a fit of brisk laughter, can cause hiccups. It happens that children hiccup several times a day. Then they talk about episodic (banal) hiccups. In this case, parents have nothing to worry about. Gradually, with age, attacks of sharp contractions of the diaphragmatic muscle become less frequent.

The situation is different with a long hiccough, which can last for hours. The child experiences discomfort and unpleasant sensations due to the huge number of contractions of the diaphragm. Each sound "ik" is a breath, uncontrollable, fast and inferior due to a sharply narrowed voice gap, when the airflow can not pass into the lungs. A child with a constant hiccough all day lacks oxygen.

Examine the baby from a pediatrician for possible pathologies that cause hiccups: gastritis, helminthic invasion, impaired liver, brain and spinal cord. Here we will consider the frequent causes of hiccups in a child, how to stop it and quickly get rid of it. In a separate article you will find all the information about hiccups in newborns, infants and infants.

Causes and mechanism of occurrence of hiccups in a child

In general, hiccups in children are caused by simple factors. They excite the nerve endings of the vagus and diaphragmatic nerves, which are located on the esophagus, stomach and diaphragm. The exciting nerve impulse along the fibers rises in the brain - the "center of hiccoughs." And there are return commands to the diaphragmatic muscle, causing it to contract.

What can cause hiccups?

1. Stomach overflow.It comes when the child ate more than usual or drank a lot of fluids. Then the stomach stretches and presses the diaphragm, lifting it up. There is a response from the brain - it causes the diaphragm to contract.
2. Annoyance of the esophagus.With insufficient chewing food and swallowing large pieces. This applies to dry products: bagels, rusks. The child may be in a hurry or it may be painful for him to chew, his baby teeth are unsteady. It is clear that the esophagus is stretched from large pieces of food and the branches of the vagus nerve are irritated.
3. Subcooling. General hypothermia causes diaphragmatic and skeletal muscles to contract when the baby has wet legs, a diaper. The body is trying to keep warm. With a compressed diaphragm, hiccups appear.
4. Aerophagia, or ingestion of air.Occurs during crying, laughing, sobbing, chewing. Aerophagia is often observed in diseases accompanied by pain in the throat. The stomach swells from the air and the contractions of the diaphragm the body lowers the pressure.
5. Nervous tension, fright.With stress in the blood, the amount of adrenaline that causes muscle contraction, including diaphragmatic, increases. In the nervous system, a failure occurs and in the "center of hiccups" a nerve excitement center appears, which begins to control the respiratory muscles.
6. An inconvenient position.If the child is for a long time in one position, for example, bent over and slouched, the organs of the abdominal cavity press on the diaphragmatic muscle, which calls for its spasm.
7. Reception of medicines.Sulfonamide drugs, with inflammatory and bacterial diseases and infections, muscle relaxants used before surgery and other medications can cause intoxication. Thus, the defeat of the nervous system can be expressed in the form of long hiccup attacks.

What pathologies cause hiccups in children

Inflammatory processes in the body are occasionally limited to a small area. They always affect the surrounding tissues, causing in them an edema that clamps the nerve endings. Hiccups are caused by diseases in which the organs that go along the wandering and diaphragmatic nerves are affected. The nervous impulse falls into the "center of hiccoughs," and the response impulse makes the child hiccup. Consider the variants of diseases that can be the causes of hiccough development:

1. Inflammation of various parts of the respiratory system: tonsillitis, laryngitis, tracheitis, bronchitis, pneumonia.
2. Diseases of the digestive system: gastritis, peptic ulcer and 12 duodenum, liver pathology.
3. Pathologies of the nervous system: traumatic lesions of nerve trunks, cells, with pathologies of the brain and spinal cord; a breakdown in the functions of the peripheral nervous system.
4. Diseases of the cardiovascular system: aneurysm of the aorta, inflammation of the membranes of the heart.

These diseases are rare in children, not always accompanied by hiccups. So, do not be scared. But you need to visit a doctor when the hiccup of a child is long (48 hours can not be removed) or regular for two or more weeks.

So, we examined the causes of hiccups in children at any age: 1, 2, 3, 4 years, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 years. Now you know what to do, from what and why it arises, how to remove it, stop it, stop it. If the child is small: a month old, up to a year old, on this page you will learn in detail the days of hiccups in children, about belching, hiccup after feeding, after eating and vomiting.

Video: How to get rid of hiccups in a child

Treatment of hiccups in a child

Most cases of hiccups in children do not require taking medications. There are many methods that allow to restore the normal activity of the respiratory center in the brain, causing the diaphragm to move smoothly. There are no universal medicines and recipes. Methods of treating hiccups are safe, perceived by children as a game. But remember that it is suitable for an adult, a child may not be suitable and even be contraindicated.

What not to do

1. Do not smear the root of the tongue with mustard.The same is in a mixture of mustard and vinegar to lubricate the tip of the tongue. So the child can cause allergies, spasms of the larynx and bronchi, an attack of suffocation.
2. Do not give a child a teaspoon of salt. The daily norm of salt for a child is less than 1 gram, and in a teaspoon is placed as much as 5 grams. Such treatment of hiccups can cause a violation of water-electrolyte balance in the body.
3. Do not frighten children.Fright soon will cause hysteria, than getting rid of hiccups. The child may then experience stuttering and enuresis.
4. Do not induce vomiting reflex.Pressing on the root of the tongue can help adults, but the child this procedure will cause unpleasant sensations and any attack of hiccups will become associated with a psychological trauma. There are many more pleasant and effective ways of treating hiccups.
5. Do not drop corvalol on sugar. It is only for adults. For children it does not fit. It is impossible to predict the child's answer to this tool. Suddenly, tachycardia, drowsiness and dizziness develop.

What to do

1. Accustom to unhurried reception of food.When the child begins to thoroughly chew food, swallow it in small portions, will not swallow the air, causing hiccups. By consuming food slowly, the risk of overeating will decrease. And this useful habit will give a chance to avoid hiccups associated with ingestion of air and overeating.
2. Delayed breathing.Tell the child to take a deep breath, as far as possible, hold his breath and draw his belly into himself. You can give him a breath of air from a paper bag. Carbon dioxide will increase in the blood, and the brain will feel a lack of oxygen. The body then "forget" about the hiccup.
3. Drinking water.Let the child hold his breath and drink 12 small sips of water. You can put a glass on a chair and, leaning over it, drink water through a straw. At the same time, attach the hands to the lock from the rear and take them as high as possible. This relaxes the esophagus and diaphragm, interrupts the passage of the nerve impulse causing the hiccup.
4. Stretch the diaphragm.Let the child breathe deeply and hold his breath for half a minute. Then he will lay his lips together with a tube and slowly exhale slowly. Do this five or six times. This stretching of the diaphragm and regulation of breathing will help restore normal muscle functioning. This method will help when hiccups are associated with a prolonged stay in the same position, and also when the child has experienced fright and hypothermia.
5. Unusual tastes.English scientists conducted an experiment on the treatment of hiccoughs by dissolving 1 teaspoon of sugar. The method helped in 19 cases out of 20. Sugar can be replaced with such sweets as M & M's, which must be chewed. In the US, they practice the treatment of hiccups in children with a spoonful of peanut butter. Lemon slice also works well. After all, products with a sharp taste switch attention of the central nervous system, distract from hiccups due to irritation of taste buds.
6. To massage the hard sky.Such a massage of the mouth area behind the upper teeth is an effective diversion maneuver for the vagus nerve. You can tickle the sky with your finger, with the tip of your tongue. This reduces the excitement from the vagus nerve caused by swallowing air or laughing.
7. Wash your face with cool water face or dip your face in the cool water.To do this, you need to collect cool water in the basin and offer the child to wash or, even better, dip his face for a few seconds with a delay in breathing. The latter is more effective due to the fact that it is necessary to hold your breath and slowly release the air of the "bulb", well, it is more interesting for children. A tilted position, unusual sensations when "diving" in the cool water will interrupt the transfer of commands from the "center of hiccups" to the diaphragm muscle, which will relax.
8. Physical exercises.You can recommend 2 options: 1) inhale, raise your hands up and stretch, on exhalation - lean down and relax; 2) put the child on a chair and tell him to press against the back and take a deep breath; Then you must lean forward, clasp your knees and hold your breath for five to six seconds; after which you can make a slow exhalation. These exercises relax the diaphragmatic muscles, holding the breath gives the effect of increasing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the blood, then the respiratory center can more effectively take control of the breathing muscles.
9. Chamomile tea.Drink from pharmacy chamomile soothes the nervous system, relax the muscles. When drinking tea with small sips, it is possible to act on the nerve receptors of the vagus nerve in the pharynx and esophagus.

Treatment with medicines hiccups in children

With the aim of treating hiccups in a child, medications are rarely used, and only in cases where bouts of hiccough are regular, last long and severely interfere with the child. As a rule, indomitable hiccups are caused by some kind of disease.

When hiccups are associated withincreased excitability of the central nervous system, apply:

Antihistamines (Pipolphen - Promethazine), which block the work of brain areas responsible for contracting the diaphragm, reduce the sensitivity of nerve endings, prevent and eliminate hiccups. Take after eating 1 dragee 1-4 times a day. Drink plenty of water. Dragee is not recommended to chew so as not to cause irritation of the intestine. From 2 months, intramuscular injection of pipolfen is possible. From age 6, you can give the child in the form of a dragee.

Neuroleptics (Aminazine - Chlorpromazine), which calm the nervous system, relieve excitement, have a hypnotic and antiemetic effect. The mechanism of action is associated with a decrease in the sensitivity of the vagus nerve. Aminazine in syrup is prescribed since the year. In the pills from 3-6 years. Single dose of 500 mcg / kg. Take 4-5 times a day after meals.

When hiccups are associated withspasm of the muscles of the diaphragm, apply:

Spasmolytics (But-spa, Papaverin), which reduce the tone of smooth muscles, of which internal organs and blood vessels are composed, relieve spasm of the intestine and stomach. Thanks to this, it is possible to relax the diaphragm and release the clamped nerves. Single dose for children up to 10-20 mg, the frequency of admission depends on age. Take, regardless of food, a lot of fluids. Papaverine is prescribed, depending on the age, for ¼-2 tablets.

With hiccups associated withbloating and digestive disorders, apply:

Vetogenic preparations (Espumizan, Plantex and other products, based on fennel, dill, anise, cumin), which help to eliminate the accumulation of gases in the intestines, which puts pressure on the diaphragm. Take 2-3 times a day after meals. If necessary, again at night.

Remember !!!

Before giving the medicine to a child, consult a pediatrician. He, if necessary, will prescribe a dose and the frequency of reception, taking into account the state of the child, his age and weight.

The publication was prepared based on the materials and advice of the practicing pediatrician of the second category Isayeva A. D.