For Kids Prone to Wheezing with Respiratory Infections, Early Antibiotics Help (1 of 2) (IMAGE)
Caption
Respiratory infections are common in preschoolers, but while most children recover fairly easily from the typical coughs and congestion, a significant number develop illnesses severe enough to interfere with breathing and warrant trips to urgent care clinics or emergency rooms.
In children whose colds tend to progress and lead to severe wheezing and difficulty breathing -- such that they are given oral corticosteroids as rescue therapy -- researchers have shown that giving a common antibiotic at the first sign of cold symptoms can reduce the risk of the episode developing into a severe lower respiratory tract illness.
The new study, led by Leonard Bacharier, MD, at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, appears online Nov. 17 in JAMA.
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Robert Boston
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