When to contact a paediatrician?
When a couple becomes a family with the birth of a child, life changes completely. Nothing will be as it used to be. Never. It is not really possible to prepare for this change even if we have been surrounded by children in our lives so far. Every day can bring us some challenge that we don’t expect. But fortunately, even then, there are those who can help, can give usable advice. Or at least knows where to go next for help. In this case, we can turn to a paediatrician, who has chosen his/her profession to help solve physical and mental difficulties from the birth of our child to his / her adulthood.
Where can I get this medical specialty?
In what exactly can a paediatrician help?
- When the new-born arrives home, he/she helps to develop appropriate lifestyle habits for the family. Gives advice on feeding, baby care, sleeping habits.
- We can address him/her with our questions concerning growth, movement development and mental development in infancy.
- We can contact him/her with a number of problems in infancy, early childhood, such as catarrhal diseases with frequent fever upon entering community, infectious diseases of childhood, musculoskeletal problems, eating disorders, recurrent abdominal complaints, digestive problems, delayed speech development, or the issue of room cleanliness.
- We can consult him/her when to see a specialist for recurrent catarrhal diseases, recurrent skin lesions, bedwetting, musculoskeletal complaints, or gastrointestinal problems.
- We can contact him/her due to night and / or day symptoms caused by sleep disorders.
- He/she can help children who are overweight make the right lifestyle change.
- We can discuss and make the optional vaccinations to be administered.
- We can contact him/her with any acute problem or persistent complaint that interferes with the child’s and / or parent’s / family’s daily activities.
- He/she can assist in performing and evaluating laboratory tests for acute illness or a chronic condition.
- Careful paediatric examination and detailed discussion of the antecedents and conditions contribute to the best possible understanding and acceptance of the conditions that do not show a temporary abnormality.
- With his/her help, we can put together the necessary medicines and supplies in our home pharmacy, or we can discuss with him/her before a trip what we should definitely take on the trip.
In light of the above, feel free to contact a paediatrician if:
- if your child has a fever
- if your child coughs dry or catarrhal, or in in seizures, or is hoarse
- if your child’s nose is clogged or running, breathes through his/her mouth, snores at night, sleeps restlessly, has shortness of breath, crawls, talks, or wakes up in a dream, has hearing deterioration
- if the lymph nodes in the neck or any part of the body of your child are swollen, painful
- if your child has a rash on a small area or all over the body
- if any part of your child’s body or joints is swollen, red, hot, painful (e.g. does not let you touch any part of his/her body, pulls his/her ears, legs when caressing, does not let you caress his/her belly), if your child is unable to stand or limps
- if your child complains of abdominal pain
- if your child has diarrhoea or constipation
- if your child is pale, weak, anorexic
- if your child’s urine has a pungent odour or any discoloration, if your child pees more often, or the previously potty-trained child pees in again at night
- if your child has noticeably lost or gained weight
- if your child experiences recurrent itching or prolonged wound healing
- if your child experiences headaches, recurrent nausea, vomiting
- if your child’s behaviour has changed (become hyperactive, aggressive, or just unmotivated), his / her school results have deteriorated, or if you notice a change in his / her social relations
