Most people describe a croup cough as sounding like a barking seal. But for those of us who have never heard a barking seal, the above description isn't necessarily helpful. A croup cough has also been described as the yelping of a fox or the barking of a dog.
In , John Cheyne, a British doctor, described a croup cough as a "most unusual cough, rough and stridulous. That a cough is different or unusual is one of the best ways to know that you are dealing with croup. You may want to consider watching a few videos on YouTube of parents who've filmed their children who have croup, or medical experts who can help you identify the cough's signature sound.
Just search for "a croup cough," and listen to the sound of the cough through the audio which may help you figure out whether your child's cough is similar. Call or see your pediatrician right away if you think that your child has croup. Although many children have mild croup symptoms , croup can sometimes cause more serious, life-threatening infections. What else can sound like a croup cough?
Fortunately, not too much—but there are other conditions that may seem similar. In the old days, pediatricians would often worry about epiglottis when a child presented with a cough and stridor. Epiglottis is an infection of the small flap of cartilage that's attached to the end of the tongue and closes when you swallow to prevent food from getting into the lungs. Thanks to the Haemophilus influenzae type b Hib vaccine, the epiglottis is not something that kids get very often anymore.
Other conditions that can mimic croup include inhalation of a foreign body, trauma, angioneurotic edema swelling of the airway , and bacterial tracheitis. Keep in mind that while it is often very easy to diagnose croup, it can sometimes be difficult to tell whether a child has viral infectious croup or spasmodic croup. In some cases, spasmodic croup can be triggered by allergies, asthma, or even reflux.
Reviewed by: Rachel S. Schare, MD. Larger text size Large text size Regular text size. What Is Croup? Most kids with croup get better in a week or so. What Are the Symptoms of Croup? Symptoms of croup are often worse at night and when a child is upset or crying.
What Causes Croup? How Is Croup Diagnosed? How Is Croup Treated? Breathing in moist air can help kids feel better. So what is croup? Croup is actually a viral infection of the vocal cords and the trachea, which is the windpipe. It causes a tight, low pitched, barking cough. It actually sounds like your child is a seal with how they're barking. They can also have a hoarse voice leading up to it. Sometimes they have a vibrating, raspy sound when they breathe in called stridor.
Stridor is a scary sound, because they're sitting there and they're coughing, and then all of a sudden when they take a big breath, you hear [makes sounds] and that's cause for alarm. With severe croup, breathing actually becomes difficult.
Croup is usually part of a cold, and there's a bunch of viruses going around right now, all of which can cause the croupy cough. When your child has croup, the hoarseness and the bark are actually caused by the opening of the vocal cords becoming more narrow. It's like the space between the vocal cords went from being that of the diameter of a straw to that of being the diameter of a coffee stirrer.
It's really hard to push air through something that narrow, and that's when you hear the bark when they're trying to take a deep breath in and cough that air out very forcefully. Croup usually lasts for a couple of days, and it generally gets worse at night.
We do hear it during the daytime, but it's almost always at night, and for some reason it likes the times between pm and am. It can go back and forth from being mild to severe, but the worst symptoms are seen in kids under the age of 3, and usually we don't see it after the age of 8 when your child's airway is bigger and can allow for more swelling before the airway gets too constricted.
Virus particles in these droplets may also survive on toys and other surfaces. If your child touches a contaminated surface and then touches his or her eyes, nose or mouth, an infection may follow.
Most at risk of getting croup are children between 6 months and 3 years of age. Because children have small airways, they are most susceptible to having more symptoms with croup. Most cases of croup are mild. In a small percentage of children, the airway swells enough to interfere with breathing. Rarely, a secondary bacterial infection of the trachea can occur, resulting in trouble breathing and requiring emergency medical care.
To stave off more-serious infections, keep your child's vaccinations current. The diphtheria and Haemophilus influenza type b Hib vaccines offer protection from some of the rarest — but most dangerous — upper airway infections. There isn't a vaccine yet that protects against parainfluenza viruses. Mayo Clinic does not endorse companies or products. Advertising revenue supports our not-for-profit mission.
This content does not have an English version. This content does not have an Arabic version. Overview Normal airway Open pop-up dialog box Close. Croup Open pop-up dialog box Close. Croup When the upper airway is infected with the virus that causes croup, tissues around the voice box larynx and the windpipe trachea will swell.
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