Croup

Croup is a common viral infection in babies and children, and in most of the cases it doesn’t cause any serious complications.

Croup

Croup is a viral infection that affects the larynx (voice box) and trachea (windpipe) and causes them to swell, which leads to difficult and noisy breathing.

Croup is common in children under the age of 3, and it affects males more than females.

Causes of croup

• Viral infections are the reason behind croup, especially the parainfluenza virus.
• Croup is highly contagious because viruses spread easily through air from the droplets that come out when the patient coughs or sneezes, and the child remains contagious for 3 days after the manifestation of symptoms or until the fever is gone.

Symptoms of croup

• Cold-like symptoms.
• Barking-like cough that’s loud and becomes worse with crying and coughing.
• Hoarseness.
• Swollen lymph nodes.
• Conjunctivitis.
• In some cases, croup might lead to difficulty breathing, cyanosis, and the sucking in of the skin around the ribs and the top of the breastbone.
• Croup may rarely lead to serious complications that require hospitalization, like severe dehydration and the need for oxygen therapy or multiple doses of inhaled breathing treatments.

Diagnosis of croup

• Examining the symptoms.

Treatment of croup

• Medications to improve the breathing.
• Comforting and calming the child.
• The risk of croup can be reduced by washing the hands frequently, staying away from sick people, and practicing good hygiene.