Curriculum · Pediatric / Nutrition & Growth / EPI / Routine Child Examination
Croup (laryngotracheobronchitis)
What it is
Croup is an acute inflammation of the larynx, trachea and bronchi, written out as laryngotracheobronchitis; laryngitis and laryngotracheitis are listed alongside it under the same name. It is called a form of upper respiratory tract infection of infants and toddlers in one place, and a lower respiratory infection common in the winter months in another, so the two descriptions do not agree on where the infection sits. Two other forms are named: spasmodic croup, a sudden onset of inspiratory stridor at night that lasts several hours and then stops as suddenly, without fever and recurrent; and atypical croup, meaning recurrent episodes of croup-like symptoms.
The affected site is the subglottis.
Causes and risk
The cause is viral. Parainfluenza virus is named in every place, and RSV is named with it. The age band is given as 6 months to 6 years in three places and as 6 months to 3 years in two others.
A further page puts the age at 6-36 mo, with increased incidence in the fall and winter months, and it gives more of the etiology: parainfluenza is given as 75%, with influenza A and B, RSV and adenovirus beside it.