A child’s constant hiccups may be caused by physiological reasons, pathologic reasons and so on. Physiological causes include eating too fast, inhaling cold air, etc. Pathological causes include indigestion and encephalitis.
1. Physiological causes:
(1) Eating too fast: usually the child may swallow a lot of air due to eating too fast, which puts the stomach in a state of obvious gastric distension and may affect the diaphragm and lead to diaphragmatic spasm, resulting in hiccups all the time.
(2) Inhalation of cold air: the child ingests cold food, the abdomen is cold, etc., may stimulate the diaphragm spasm and lead to hiccups.
2. Pathologic causes:
(1) Indigestion: If the child eats and drinks excessively, the gastric peristalsis may be slowed down due to indigestion, and the food will accumulate in the intestines and produce a lot of gas, resulting in hiccups.
(2) Encephalitis: Usually when some children suffer from encephalitis, the pathogens may pass through the blood-brain barrier and act on the central nervous system, causing the central nervous system to become infected, which may lead to diaphragmatic spasms and hiccups.
There may be more reasons for hiccups, so parents are advised to take their children to the hospital in time to clarify the cause with the help of the doctor and make targeted treatment.