Frequency and perception of cough severity

Abstract

Objective: The frequency of the common symptom of cough in children is unknown. The aim of this study was to compare cough frequency and perception of cough severity in children with and without recurrent cough. Methodology: Eighty-four children with (C) and without (NC) recurrent cough were recruited in the same season. Cough frequency (measured with cough-meter) and subjective cough severity (measured on parent-completed and child-completed diary cards on two subjective systems), were compared between the two groups. Results: Cough frequency in C (median 65/day) was significantly higher than in NC (10/day). The correlation between daytime and night-time cough was higher in NC (r s = 0.51, ..