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Night-time cough in children with acute wheezing and with upper respiratory tract infection

Jacob Urkin1, Yaron Ishay, Natalya Bilenko

  • 1Division of Community Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel. medcad@bgu.ac.il

Primary Care Respiratory Journal : Journal of the General Practice Airways Group
|July 18, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Night-time cough patterns in children with acute wheezing (AW) differ significantly from those with an upper respiratory tract infection (URTI). This distinction can aid in clinical diagnosis of pediatric respiratory conditions.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Pulmonology
  • Sleep Medicine
  • Diagnostic Tools

Background:

  • Nocturnal cough is a common symptom in children.
  • Differentiating causes like acute wheezing and upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) can be challenging.
  • Objective cough monitoring may provide valuable diagnostic insights.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze and compare night-time cough characteristics in children diagnosed with acute wheezing versus URTI.
  • To determine if objective cough data can correlate with clinical diagnoses.

Main Methods:

  • A portable cough monitoring instrument was used to record night-time coughs in 49 children.
  • Children were diagnosed with either acute wheezing or URTI.
  • Cough variables including frequency, duration, and bout patterns were analyzed.

Main Results:

  • Children with acute wheezing exhibited significantly higher cough frequency, longer cough durations, and more frequent coughing bouts per night compared to URTI cases.
  • Peak coughing activity for acute wheezing occurred between 23:00 and 01:00.
  • No significant difference in cough counts was observed between groups from 01:00 to 06:00.

Conclusions:

  • Distinct quantitative differences in night-time cough patterns exist between acute wheezing and URTI in children.
  • Objective cough monitoring shows potential as a supplementary tool for clinical differentiation in pediatric respiratory illness.
Abstract

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