Symptoms and treatment of tracheitis in children

A variety of diseases can lead to the development of cough in children, one of which is tracheitis. How this disease manifests itself in babies and how it can be dangerous, this article will tell.

What it is?

Inflammation of the mucous membranes that cover the inside of the trachea is called tracheitis. This pathology is quite common, especially in babies. Both a child and an adult can get tracheitis. Boys get sick as often as girls. A child living in any country can get tracheitis.

This pathology can be independent or occurs in conjunction with other diseases of the upper respiratory tract. Very often babies have a whole "bouquet" of similar diseases at the same time: pharyngitis, laryngitis and tracheitis. One pathology turns into another, which significantly disrupts the well-being and general condition of the child.

The duration of the acute period of tracheitis can be different. On average, it is 5-10 days.

After an acute period of the disease, a fairly long recovery time occurs - convalescence. It is characterized by the persistence of residual symptoms of the disease, which gradually disappear within 1-2 weeks. The recovery period is very important. Compliance with all the recommendations of doctors at this time will prevent the transition of an acute process to a chronic one, and also reduce the likelihood of the appearance of long-term adverse effects of the disease.

Babies who attend educational institutions have a high risk of contracting infectious forms of tracheitis. It's connected with a high rate of spread of pathogens from a sick child to a healthy one.

Young children, due to the insufficiently active work of the immune system, are much more susceptible to this disease than older children.

Rarely enough, tracheitis occurs in newborns. If a one-year-old baby is breastfed, then the risk of infection with various infections leading to pathologies of the respiratory tract is small.

Causes

A variety of causal factors lead to the development of inflammation in the trachea in children. They can act in isolation or simultaneously. The combined effect of several causal factors leads to the fact that the baby has a variety of adverse symptoms, which is bad for his general well-being. The following reasons contribute to the development of inflammation in the trachea:

Bacteria... Bacterial infections top the list of causes that cause various pathologies of the respiratory tract. They are very common in children's practice. Bacterial tracheitis is contagious. It is easily transmitted by airborne droplets from a sick child to a healthy one.

Viruses... They are the causative agents of tracheitis somewhat less frequently than bacteria. Influenza and parainfluenza viruses, rhino and adenoviruses, Coxsackie and Epstein-Barr viruses and many others can lead to the development of the disease. Viral tracheitis is usually milder than bacterial tracheitis. All adverse symptoms against the background of properly selected treatment, as a rule, disappear within 5-7 days.
Allergic pathologies... They already show themselves in children under one year old. Various allergens become provoking factors for the appearance of unfavorable symptoms of the disease. They are characterized by a wavy course: periods of exacerbation are replaced by a fairly stable remission. The ingress of allergens into the child's body each time provokes a deterioration in the child's well-being and the onset of the disease.
Inhalation of too cold air. The impurities and industrial waste contained in the atmosphere also have an adverse and irritating effect on the delicate mucous membranes of the larynx. According to statistics, children aged 2-3 years are most susceptible to this variant of the disease. This feature is due to the insufficiently effective work of local immunity.

Hypothermia. Both local and general cooling can lead to the development of the disease. Walking in cold weather without a scarf and hat or swimming in an insufficiently heated reservoir in summer - often become the reasons for the appearance of respiratory tract pathologies in children.
Long stay in a heavily smoked room. The smallest components of toxic substances that are released during smoking have a negative effect on the cells of the mucous membranes of the trachea. For the development of the disease in a child, even a short stay in a smoky room is enough. Adults should remember that under no circumstances should they smoke in the room where the child is!
Inhalation of dry air... For normal breathing, physiological parameters of the microclimate are required. So that the inhaled air does not damage or "scratch" the delicate mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, you should carefully monitor the humidity in children's rooms. Inhaling too dry air often leads to severe irritation of the trachea, which ultimately contributes to the development of symptoms of tracheitis.

Weakening of immunity. Often sick and weakened children are more susceptible to various infectious pathologies. This is due to a pathological decrease in immunity.

Babies with immunodeficiency disorders are also at increased risk. If a child suffers from colds and infectious diseases more than 5-6 times a year, then this is a significant reason for contacting a pediatric immunologist.

Kinds

The inflammatory process in the trachea can be different in duration and intensity. This is due to various reasons that lead to its development. Acute tracheitis is said to be when the disease appears in a baby for the first time in his life. In more than 90% of cases, it is an infectious form.

Quite often, acute tracheitis is recorded in infants and children in the very first years of life.

The most common cause of acute tracheal inflammation in children is viruses. Somewhat less often, the development of the disease is caused by the bacterial flora - streptococci and staphylococci. Anaerobic microorganisms cause tracheitis in no more than 5% of cases. The acute process is characterized by the appearance of severe tracheal edema, its infiltration with inflammatory immune cells, as well as the formation of a sufficiently large amount of mucus. These morphological features lead to the fact that the baby has clinical symptoms characteristic of the disease.

Chronic tracheitis in most cases is a sequential acute stage. In pediatric practice, it is found mainly in babies who have impaired immune system functioning and complicated chronic diseases of internal organs. In adolescence, the development of the chronic form of tracheitis is significantly affected by long-term or occasional smoking.

Babies with severe lung pathologies and congestive diseases of the cardiovascular system are at risk for the development of a persistent protracted form of tracheal pathology. In some cases, diseases of the paranasal sinuses lead to the development of a chronic variant.

Morphologically, during the chronization of the process on the mucous membranes of the trachea, both hypertrophic and atrophic changes can be observed. Hypertrophy is manifested by increased blood circulation in the blood vessels and proliferation of the inner lining of the respiratory tree. These changes provoke the appearance in the child cough with a lot of phlegm. The amount of mucus secreted also increases markedly.

With atrophy, the mucous membrane changes color. It becomes gray, an uncharacteristic shine appears. The mucous membrane becomes noticeably thinner and can bleed easily.

In some cases, dense crusts appear on the inner epithelial lining of the trachea. They make coughs much worse. He becomes more harsh and intolerable.

Symptoms

Adverse symptoms of infectious tracheitis do not appear immediately in a child. Before the onset of clinical signs of the disease, the incubation period first passes. It can be of different duration.

For viral forms of tracheitis, the incubation period is usually 2-5 days. Adverse symptoms of bacterial infections usually appear after 3-7 days.

The disease is accompanied by the following symptoms:

Harsh cough. This symptom is very characteristic of tracheitis. The cough can be dry or moist. He worries the baby both during the day and at night. The intensity of the cough can be different and depends on the cause that caused the disease.
Difficulty coughing up... The presence of a large amount of mucus and phlegm makes it difficult for the child to cough up. During a coughing fit, he strains, his face turns red. Some babies have tears on their faces. It is a reaction to pain syndrome that occurs with a severe cough.

Soreness in the chest. The pain syndrome increases markedly during coughing. Some babies feel "stuffy" in their breasts, which is very difficult for them. This situation can lead to the fact that the baby's breathing becomes more shallow, instinctively the baby begins to spare the chest and limit the amplitude of respiratory movements. Quite often, this symptom is present in babies aged 5-12 years.
Pain in the oropharynx. Appears after coughing up. In the overwhelming majority of cases, acute tracheitis occurs in conjunction with pharyngitis, which also contributes to the appearance of persistent pain in the pharynx. This makes it difficult to swallow food. Solid food, when swallowed, causes a marked increase in pain.
Changing the timbre of the voice. It usually becomes hoarse. The baby may wheeze when pronouncing words. In infants, this symptom manifests itself during crying.

The appearance of phlegm. In some forms of tracheitis, this symptom may be absent. Usually the sputum is thick enough, it is difficult to cough up. The amount of pathological secretion can be different: from a teaspoon to 50-100 ml per day.

The color of the sputum is usually grayish or yellow, and may contain bloody streaks.

An increase in body temperature. The mild course of the disease is accompanied by subfebrile condition. In this case, the body temperature rises to 37-37.5 degrees. More severe forms of the disease are accompanied by febrile values. With the addition of complications, the body temperature rises above 38 degrees.

Intoxication. As a result of the inflammatory infectious process, a large number of a wide variety of toxic decay products accumulate in the child's body. Their accumulation in the internal environment leads to the appearance of the following clinical signs: the appearance of a moderate headache, an increase in weakness, apathy, and a change in mood.
Child behavior disorder. In the acute period of the illness, the baby may become more lethargic, he loses interest in playing with his favorite toys. Harsh coughing significantly disrupts children's sleep. The child may be very sleepy during the daytime, and little sleep at night. A decrease in appetite leads to the fact that the baby begins to lose weight.

Diagnostics

If the child has the first symptoms of tracheitis, be sure to show the baby to the doctor.

If you have a high body temperature, you should not go to the clinic on your own. In this case, it is better to call the pediatrician at home. The doctor will examine the baby and conduct the necessary clinical examination. In some cases, the pediatrician will refer the baby for a consultation to pediatric otolaryngologist.

To establish the correct diagnosis, just a clinical examination is not enough. To establish the causative agent of the disease, additional laboratory tests are required.

All sick babies must undergo general clinical tests. In a general blood test for infectious tracheitis, the number of leukocytes increases and ESR is significantly accelerated. Changes in the leukocyte formula indicate that there is a viral or bacterial infection in the child's body.

It also helps to identify the source of the disease. bacteriological analysis. The material for this examination is sputum from the respiratory tract. The research is carried out in laboratory conditions. The result of the analysis shows the presence of a specific causative agent of the disease.

This laboratory test is quite widespread and is successfully used in pediatric practice to detect various respiratory pathologies.

In some situations, doctors additionally prescribe X-ray of the lungs. It is performed when there is a suspicion of pneumonia. This pathology of the lungs develops in severe tracheitis and can become a rather dangerous complication of it.

Radiography in very young patients is not performed, since this method of research has a sufficiently high radiation exposure. To exclude pneumonia in this case, doctors perform auscultation of the chest using a conventional phonendoscope.

Complications

The most common complication of an acute process is its transition to a chronic form. Chronization occurs mainly in rather weak babies. Immunodeficiency states also contribute to the transition of acute tracheitis into a protracted form. Chronic tracheitis is exhausting enough for a baby and requires complex treatment.

Pneumonia is one of the most dangerous complications. It develops when the inflammatory process spreads from the trachea along the bronchial tree. Purulent pneumonia is dangerous by the development of abscesses and sepsis. Treatment of this dangerous complication is carried out only in a hospital setting.

The danger of prolonged allergic tracheitis is that it can cause a child to develop bronchial asthma. The risk is especially high in allergic babies with a hereditary predisposition. Frequent exacerbations of allergic tracheitis contribute to the appearance of persistent respiratory failure.

Exposure to allergenic factors on the child's body against the background of chronic inflammation in the trachea can cause symptoms of bronchial obstruction.

Treatment

You can cure tracheitis at home. However, this should be done only with the obligatory supervision of the attending physician.

Even mild forms of the disease, with the wrong treatment, can cause quite dangerous complications in a child.

The duration of tracheitis therapy is usually 7-10 days. In some cases, treatment may be longer.

The therapy regimen is selected individually taking into account the age of the baby and the presence of concomitant chronic pathologies of internal organs. To eliminate the unfavorable symptoms of the disease, the appointment of a whole complex of various drugs is required.

Herbal medicine also helps to improve the well-being of the child, which is especially effective in the smallest patients.

To eliminate the adverse symptoms of the disease, the following are used:

Compliance with bed rest... If the baby has a high body temperature, then he must be in bed during the entire period of heat and fever.This is a simple compulsory measure to help avoid the development of dangerous complications in the future.
Sufficient drinking regime... To eliminate bacterial and viral toxins from the child's body, you need to drink plenty of fluids. Plain boiled water is suitable as the main detoxifier. A sick child should drink at least 1-1.5 liters per day. Fruit drinks and fruit drinks made from berries and fruits will also be an excellent option for drinks.
Compliance with a diet. To replenish the strength necessary to fight the disease, the child must receive a sufficient amount of vital nutrients. The daily calorie content of the children's diet on days of illness should be slightly increased. Food should be cooked in the most gentle way - stew, bake or boil. All meals should be sufficiently chopped so as not to increase the pain when swallowing.

Antiviral drugs. Prescribed for viral tracheitis. The duration of their use is 5-7 days. The dosage and frequency of application is chosen by the attending physician. The use of antiviral drugs in babies has positive reviews from parents. They note that taking these medications helps to improve the well-being of the baby in a shorter time.
Antibiotics. They are prescribed for bacterial forms of tracheitis. They are written out for 7-10 days. When prescribing antibacterial drugs, the effectiveness of their action must be monitored. For this, the general well-being of the child and the improvement of indicators in the general blood test are assessed.
Antitussives. Helps relieve cough and improve sputum discharge. They can be prescribed in the form of tablets, sweet syrups or solutions for inhalation. "Sinekod", "Lazolvan", "Gedelix", "Mukaltin" and other medicines will help to cope with a hacking cough and improve the child's well-being. When signs of bronchial obstruction appear, special bronchodilators are prescribed, for example, "Berodual".

Antipyretic and anti-inflammatory. They are used when the body temperature rises above 38 degrees. In children, drugs based on paracetamol and ibuprofen are actively used. They should not be used for prophylaxis and at low-grade fever, since such use can significantly aggravate the course of the disease and increase the risk of side effects.
Inhalation. They are carried out only after prior consultation with the attending physician. In older children, a variety of aromatic oils can be used to inhale. A couple of drops of this remedy are enough for one procedure. Aromatic oils of fir, cedar, pine and eucalyptus have excellent anti-inflammatory and immunostimulating effects.
Normalization of humidity in the children's room. Too dry air has a pronounced irritant effect on the mucous membranes of the trachea. The optimum humidity in the nursery should be 55-60%. Special devices - humidifiers - will help to improve the microclimate indicators. When working, they spray the smallest particles of water, which contributes to good humidification of dry indoor air.

Immunostimulating therapy... It is carried out according to strict indications. Interferon preparations have a pronounced stimulating effect on the immune system. They can be used as nasal drops or spray, as well as by ingestion or injection. The choice of an immunostimulating drug and the frequency of its use is chosen by a pediatric immunologist or attending pediatrician.
Multivitamin complexes. For a quick recovery, the child needs a sufficient intake of antioxidant biologically active substances. Vitamin complexes enriched with vitamins A, C and E will be an excellent component of the complex treatment of various clinical forms of tracheitis.
Beekeeping products. Propolis and honey have a pronounced anti-inflammatory effect. These products help fight severe symptoms of intoxication in the child's body, and also have a pronounced immunostimulating effect.

Honey should be used carefully, since quite often babies have allergic reactions to it.

Percussion massage. It is carried out by lightly tapping the fingers on the chest. This massage improves the passage of thick mucus through the respiratory tract. It should be performed daily, 2 times a day. To obtain a positive effect, 10-12 procedures are required.
Drinking alkaline drinks. They make the sputum thinner, which makes it easier to pass through the airways. Mineral water and milk work well as alkaline drinks. They should be consumed 30 minutes before meals, 50-100 ml. It is important to note that milk and mineral water must be preheated to 40-45 degrees.

Prevention

Taking preventive measures is very important. The main component of prevention is to prevent infections from entering the child's body and to strengthen immunity.

Active daily walks in the fresh air, optimal physical activity and proper healthy diet will help improve the functioning of the immune system. When playing outside, be sure to choose warm and comfortable clothes for your baby. Wearing a scarf should not be forgotten in windy weather.

Treatment of secondary foci of infection also plays an important role in the prevention of tracheitis. Babies suffering from chronic pathologies of ENT organs must be observed by the ENT. They should visit a pediatric otolaryngologist at least 2-3 times a year.

During mass outbreaks of infectious pathologies, children attending educational institutions should be at home. Compliance with quarantine significantly reduces the risk of possible infection with infectious tracheitis.

For more information about this disease, its symptoms and treatment, see the next video.