Chronic cough in children: the etiology and medical history of 420 cases
in Shanghai
Abstract
Objective: Chronic cough is one of the most common and
frequently-occurring diseases in children. We investigated the
etiologies and clinical features of children with chronic cough (CC), in
order to improve the diagnostic and treatment of the disease by
pediatricians. Methods: Participating 420 children, aged 1-14 years old,
from 5 hospitals in different regions of Shanghai, between September
2017 and July 2019. Children with chronic cough were enrolled to
identify the specific cause and clinical information based on a
questionnaire survey. All the data were collected and statistically
analyzed by Chi-square test to identify the constituent ratio of each
cause. Results: The etiology component ratio showed that 146 cases
(34.8%) had PIC; 96 cases (22.9%) had UACS; 90 cases (21.4%) had CVA;
75 cases (17.9%) had AC; 11 cases (2.6%) had TS; 2 cases (0.5%) had
GERD. For the children with CC, the mainly age of onset is 3-6 years
(54.05%). The mainly cough character is wet cough (65.7%). 67.1% of
children with chronic cough were prescribed antibiotics, of which 41.7%
were azithromycin. Various cough drops, antihistamines, aerosolized
inhalation, montelukast, etc. were often used in the treatment of
children’s chronic cough. Conclusion: The leading 3 causes of chronic
cough in children were PIC, UACS and CVA. The mainly age of onset is 3-6
years; mainly cough character is wet cough. Antibiotics are the mainly
treatment, often combined with cough medicine and atomization.