Could ingestion of water by a toddler be a matter of concern?
Patient: I'm just concerned.My toddler fell into our pond today and within seconds I jumped in a grabbed him.My mother was with us and she said I was so fast that I jumped in,grabbed the baby and had him out of the water before she even knew what happened.He coughed once and began crying then I immediately took him and we both jumped in the shower and he continued to cry.He settled down by the time we got out of the shower and then fell asleep,but he did miss him nap time so he was tired.I woke him up early cause I was concerned about this 'dry drowning'  or 'delayed drowning'I was reading about.Should I be concerned? He is acting fine and normal now.He ate and is playing and acting fine.There was no continuing coughing or chocking.Reading about this has got me concerned about..24 hours later people have died and they were acting fine prior to ingesting water. Doctor: Thanks for putting up your query at HealthCareMagic. I have gone through the details carefully and do not think that it is a cause of your concern. You may relax. Probably the child was crying because he was not prepared for the sudden situation. Even if the child has ingested a bit of water (if any), all that can happen is some amount of diarrhoea or vomiting. In case it happens, you need to manage it using ORS. I do not see any other major issue. Do not be bothered by jargon like dry 'drowning' or 'delayed drowning'. I do not think that this can be the situation in the case of your child. But take the child to a pediatrician if you see any abnormal behaviour.I hope that helps. Feel free to revert back with further queries if any.