Infants can be suctioned three times a day. The number of times a day is usually determined by the amount of sputum and the condition of the child. If necessary, the number of sputum suction can be temporarily increased.
Sputum suction refers to a method of sucking out secretions from the respiratory tract through the oral cavity, nasal cavity and artificial airway to keep the respiratory tract clear and prevent aspiration pneumonia and asphyxia. There is no uniform standard for the number of suctioning times per day for infants. If the infant has particularly large amounts of sputum and there is a possibility of suffocation, the number of suctioning times should be increased appropriately.
However, during suctioning, the action should be gentle so as not to cause damage to the mucous membrane of the baby’s throat, trachea or esophagus. If the baby develops nausea or vomiting during suctioning, the secretions in the baby’s mouth should be removed and suctioning should be suspended.
In addition, besides suctioning, sputum can be loosened by nebulized inhalation and back patting method. Meanwhile, babies should increase the amount of water they drink to dilute the viscous secretion and facilitate coughing up or suctioning out the sputum.
Babies with a lot of sputum should go to a regular medical institution to identify the cause of the disease and then actively treat the primary disease.