RT Book, Section
A1 Freire, Gabrielle
A1 Shefrin, Allan Evan
A1 Zemek, Roger
A2 Tintinalli, Judith E.
A2 Ma, O. John
A2 Yealy, Donald M.
A2 Meckler, Garth D.
A2 Stapczynski, J. Stephan
A2 Cline, David M.
A2 Thomas, Stephen H.
SR Print(0)
ID 1166594104
T1 Wheezing in Infants and Children
T2 Tintinalli's Emergency Medicine: A Comprehensive Study Guide, 9e
YR 2020
FD 2020
PB McGraw-Hill Education
PP New York, NY
SN 9781260019933
LK accessemergencymedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1166594104
RD 2024/04/19
AB Wheezing  is  a  high-pitched  sound  that  occurs  when  there  is  an  elevation  of  airway  resistance  due  to  an  obstructive  process.  The  clinician  must  differentiate  between  stridor  and  wheeze  because  this  determines  location  of  the  airway  obstruction.  Stridor  is  a  sign  of  upper  airway  obstruction  (above  the  thoracic  inlet)  that  is  more  marked  during  inspiration,  whereas  wheeze  signifies  lower  airway  obstruction  distal  to  the  thoracic  inlet  that  is  more  marked  during  expiration  (see  Chapter  126,  “Stridor  and  Drooling  in  Infants  and  Children”).1-4  Wheezing  implies  a  generalized  obstructive  airway  disease  when  diffuse  and  focal  obstruction  when  localized.  However,  severe  flow  limitation  may  exist  without  wheezing,  for  example,  the  silent  chest  in  a  severe  asthma  exacerbation.  Bronchiolitis  is  the  most  frequent  cause  of  wheezing  in  infants,  and  asthma  is  the  most  frequent  cause  in  children  and  adolescents.