Health Update: Coping with croup

ONE OF the most frightening sounds for many parents is the barking cough of croup, which often strikes in the middle of the night. It is caused by an acute infection leading to inflammation of the larynx, which can make breathing difficult.

Many children can be helped if they are moved to a steamy room such as a bathroom. Others may need to go to hospital. Some doctors believe that steroid drugs help in the most severe cases. The Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, has studied children who are so badly affected that they need tubes passed down their throats to help them to breathe. It has found that they recover much faster if they are given the steroid prednisolone. According to the report in the Lancet, the drug reduced the number of times children relapsed.