Croup classification

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Luke Rusowicz-Orazem, B.S.

Classification of Croup

Croup is classified by severity of symptoms through the Westley score of assessing croup severity, demonstrated in the table below:

Feature	0	1	2	3	4	5
Chest wall retraction	None	Mild	Moderate	Severe
Stridor	None	With agitation	At rest
Cyanosis	None				With agitation	At rest
Level of consciousness	Normal					Disoriented
Air entry	Normal	Decreased	Markedly decreased	Markedly decreased	Markedly decreased	Markedly decreased

The score is aggregated into a qualitative croup classification:

Classification	Score	Features
Mild	≤2	Characteristic barking cough and hoarseness
Moderate	3-5	Cough, hoarseness, and stridor
Severe	6-11	Cough, hoarseness, stridor, and visible chest indrawing
Respiratory Failure	≥12	Failure of respiratory system