Ask Our Experts: Common Flu and Sore Throat

What is the best remedy for a common flu and sore throat?

Most of the time, common flu and sore throat are due to viral infection of the upper respiratory tract and normally self limiting without the need for medication. However, if the symptoms are causing discomfort to your child resulting in disturb sleep and refusal to feed, then medication is warranted.

Saline or sea-water nasal spray or drop is a good and safe remedy to ease the runny/block nose caused by common flu for infants even as young as newborn. For infants more than 6 months old with severe flu symptoms, non sedative anti-histamine may be helpful but sedative type of medications should be avoided for infants less than 2 years of age.

As for sore throat, pain relief medications in the form of oral sprays or drops are effective in soothing the infants. However, if the sore throat is associated with high grade fever and poor oral intake, it is advisable to bring your child to see doctor to determine the cause of the symptom which may be due to bacterial infection and thus need antibiotic therapy.

When should I start worrying if my baby is having a fever?

Fever is a normal body reaction towards infection or inflammation. Low grade fever is temperature ranging from 37.5-38°C, moderate fever is from 38-39°C and high grade fever is >39°C.

Normally baby with low to moderate fever but well and active otherwise will not have any caused of concern and generally easily treated with anti-pyretic and is self limiting. However, if your child has moderate to high grade fever associated with irritability, poor oral intake, inactivity and unwell looking, it is advisable to bring him or her to seek medical attention.

Your child’s doctor will then not only prescribe antipyretic to suppress the fever but also to identify the source of infection that leads to fever. By treating the source of fever, for example bacterial infection with antibiotic, fever will normally settled by itself.