Croup: What to Know and How to Help

Have you heard that barking cough in the middle of the night? It can be frightening as you watch your child gasp for air.

Croup, on an average, tends to have two peaks in incidence during the year: November and May. The onset of the illness can be abrupt with fever and barking cough in the middle of the night. A runny nose develops within 24 hours of the onset of symptoms. Older kids and adults will feel run down and a little achy. Sometimes a headache is present, as well as decrease in appetite.

Being a viral illness, the treatment is mainly symptomatic. A cool mist vaporizer in the bedroom makes breathing easier. Push fluids to avoid dehydration and give ibuprofen or Tylenol to help with aches and fevers. Sometimes if there is enough breathing distress, we will use steroids by mouth or by nebulizer to reduce the swelling in the breathing tube. If a croup attack happens in the middle of the night, get a nice hot steam going in the bathroom followed by having your child breathe the cool air through an open window.

Rarely, a trip to the emergency room is necessary. Look for signs of severe distress: rapid breathing, inability to talk, panicked look in face, using diaphragm and chest wall muscles to breathe hard (they are sinking in), nose flaring in babies, bluish lips or fingernails or difficulty swallowing saliva.

References:

Croup in Young Children - HealthyChildren.org