By: Tuhin Choudhary, MD, MPH, MS & Robert W. Frenck Jr., MD, FAAP
Your child comes across thousands of germs every day—in the air, on the playground, in food, and on surfaces like doorknobs and tabletops. While many germs are harmless and some even help keep us healthy, others can cause infections.
The good news is that there are many ways to help protect your child from infections. Vaccines can help prevent many of them, and if your child does get sick, your pediatrician can recommend treatments that target the germ causing the infection.
Read on to learn how vaccines, antibiotics, antiviral medicines, antifungal medicines and antiparasitic medicines can help prevent and treat childhood infections.
Childhood infections: fast facts for parents
Infections are caused by viruses, bacteria, fungi or parasites.
Vaccines help prevent many serious infections by training the immune system to recognize and resist viruses.
Antibiotics treat bacterial infections (like strep throat), but they don’t work for viral infections such as the flu.
Antiviral, antifungal and antiparasitic medicines are used for specific infections when needed.
When you're not sure what is making your child sick, it's important to talk with your pediatrician before starting any medicine.
Can vaccines prevent infections?
Yes. Vaccines are a medical success story. Thanks to vaccines, many serious diseases that once took time away from kids to grow, play and learn are now rare.
Vaccines teach your child’s immune system to recognize and resist dangerous germs. By keeping your child up to date with the
recommended vaccines, you can prevent many viral and bacterial diseases.
On-time vaccination helps prevent kids from getting sick viral illnesses such as measles, chickenpox, COVID and the flu. Vaccination can also protect children from bacterial illnesses like whooping cough, tetanus and meningitis. Immunized kids are healthier kids who can focus on growing, playing and learning.
If you have any questions about vaccines, talk with your pediatrician.
What kind of infections are treated with antibiotics?
Antibiotics are medicines that can treat
bacterial infections like pneumonia or strep throat, not viral infections like the flu. Antibiotics can kill bacteria or stop them from multiplying.
What is a bacterial infection?
Not all bacteria make us sick. Some of them naturally live on the skin, eyelids, nose, mouth and in the gut. "Good" bacteria can help our body work better by breaking down foods, for example, and protecting us from harmful bacteria or fungi.
When there is an imbalance in good bacteria, though, harmful bacteria can cause an infection.
Harmful bacteria can get inside someone’s nose, throat or bowels, but not everybody develops an infection. Some people don’t have symptoms but spread harmful bacteria to others who do get sick. The disease can be mild or serious depending on the child’s age, immunity, nutrition, genetic makeup and general health.
What antibiotics can and can’t do
Your child has probably been given antibiotics more often than other infection-fighting prescription medicines.
It’s important to know they are only useful against infections caused by bacteria. For illnesses caused by other kinds of germs, antibiotics may not help. In fact, when used for the wrong illness, antibiotics can be risky and have side effects. Using antibiotics the wrong way can also contribute to the growing problem of antibiotic resistance.
When your child’s doctor might recommend an antibiotic
Nearly every parent has had to give their child a course of antibiotics for an ear infection or strep throat. Most can name some of the most common antibiotics —penicillin and amoxicillin, for example—that have helped their child resist bacterial infections.
Which infections can be treated with antiviral medicines?
Antiviral medicines can be used to treat certain viral infections. Antiviral medications help stop the virus from multiplying and spreading in the body. This can reduce symptoms, shorten the length of illness and lower the risk of complications. However, they can’t kill viruses when an infection already exists.
What is a viral infection?
Every child will get some sort of viral illness. Many viral infections affect the respiratory tract, which includes the nose, throat, and breathing passages.
Some examples of viral infections are the common cold, the flu and sinusitis. But viruses also can cause more serious illnesses such as hepatitis, rabies and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).
What antiviral medicines can and can’t do
Viral medicines are more specific than antibiotics. They tackle a particular virus instead of a wide group, like antibiotics do with bacteria.
Viral medicines can’t help with all viral infections. For example, if your child has a common cold, just let it run its course. Kids aren’t usually prescribed antivirals, but your pediatrician will be able to tell you if your child may need them.
Even though viral illnesses should not be treated with antibiotics, bacterial infections sometimes happen as a complication of a viral disease. In those cases, antibiotics can be used to treat the bacterial infection.
When your child’s doctor might recommend an antiviral medicine
These are examples of antiviral drugs sometimes prescribed for children:
Amantadine can treat and prevent the flu. It’s most useful when started soon after your child’s flu symptoms begin, within the first two days of the illness.
Acyclovir is used to treat chickenpox. It also helps with the symptoms associated with herpes infections that may affect the skin, eyes, mouth, genitals or brain.
Ribavirin and interferon are sometimes prescribed for chronic hepatitis. Their use in children has been limited.
What is the best way to treat a fungal infection?
Many medications can fight fungal infections. They’re often available in a topical form that can be applied directly to the skin. Some are over-the-counter medicines, while others must be prescribed by your doctor.
What is a fungal infection?
Some fungi normally live in the body and never cause any illness. But when fungi grow too much or enter areas where they do not belong, they can cause infections.
Common fungal infections in children include
ringworm (which can affect the skin, scalp or nails), athlete's foot, jock itch, thrush and other yeast infections (candidiasis). Some
diaper rashes can also be caused by an overgrowth of yeast.
Fungal infections happen when children breathe in those germs, or they get into their skin through a cut. The germs settle in the lungs and begin to multiply, form groups and travel inside the body. Kids with weakened immune systems due cancer or AIDS, for example, can get very sick.
What antifungal medicines can and can’t do
Many over-the-counter antifungal products are considered safe when used following the instructions on the label. Still, it’s always a good idea to talk with your pediatrician before treating your child with an antifungal.
Some prescription antifungal medicines are not licensed for use in children because there is little research about their effect.
Use these medicines with care and your pediatrician’s guidance. They may have serious side effects.
When your child’s doctor might recommend an antifungal medicine
For serious fungal infections, pediatricians may select a medication called amphotericin B. They might recommend an antifungal medication from a group called "azoles." Two of the most widely used azoles are fluconazole and itraconazole.
How are parasitic infections treated in children?
There are different types of antiparasitic medicines. Each one targets a specific parasite. These medications work by paralyzing parasites, stopping their growth or killing them.
What is a parasitic infection?
Parasites are tiny microorganisms that can get inside the body and start living there. They survive by stealing nutrients from their hostsSome of them are so small we can only see them with a microscope, but others are big enough to see them with a naked eye.
Children can become infected with parasites through contaminated food or water, insect bites, contact with infected people or animals or exposure to contaminated soil.
Parasitic infections that children in the United States may get include pinworms, giardiasis, head lice and, less commonly, tapeworm and hookworm infections. Other parasitic diseases, such as malaria, are more often tied to travel to certain parts of the world.
What antiparasitic medicines can and can’t do
Some antiparasitic drugs are only available directly from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and your doctor must ask for them.
Some drugs to treat malaria are not as effective anymore because the parasite has become resistant to them. So new antimalaria drugs are now being made and tested.
What your child’s doctor might recommend
There are 3 types of antiparasitic medicines your doctor might recommend:
Antiprotozoals treat a group of parasites called protozoa
Anthelminthics treat infections with parasitic worms (helminths)
Ectoparasiticides are used to kill lice, scabies and other parasites from a group called ectoparasites
Ivermectin: claims about this antiparasitic medicine
Being a parent means dealing with a lot of information. Sometimes it’s hard to know if what you see or read online is true. For example, you may have heard false and dangerous claims about the antiparasitic drug ivermectin as a treatment for COVID.
Ivermectin is meant to treat parasites in horses and cattle—not to treat viruses in humans. There is not enough evidence to prove it can treat viruses in humans. People who take ivermectin for COVID can get sick and may need to be hospitalized.
The best way to protect your child is getting the COVID vaccine. It teaches their immune system to recognize and resist the virus. Some health conditions make it dangerous to take antiparasitic medicines, especially kidney disease and a weakened immune system. That’s why your pediatrician’s guidance is so important.
Your child’s pediatrician will prescribe the antiparasitic that works best to treat your child’s infection. They know your kid’s medical history and know which medication isright for them.
Remember
Not all infections are treated the same way. Vaccines can help prevent many serious infections before they start. If your child does get sick, the treatment depends on the type of germ causing the infection. Your pediatrician can help identify what's making your child sick, recommend the safest and most effective treatment and answer any questions you may have.
More information
About Dr. Choudhary
Tuhin Choudhary, MD, MPH, MS, is a second year combined Internal Medicine-Pediatrics resident at Tulane University School of Medicine. Her professional interests include infectious disease and tropical medicine, health equity, global health, mentorship for first generation and nontraditional students, and medical education.
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About Dr. Frenck
Robert W. Frenck Jr., MD, FAAP, is board-certified in pediatrics and pediatric infectious diseases and a member of the AAP Section on Infectious Diseases. He practices at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and is a professor of pediatrics at the University of Cincinnati.
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