Bronchiolitis natural history
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
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Natural History
In a typical case, an infant under twelve months of age develops cough, wheeze, and shortness of breath over one or two days. The diagnosis is made by clinical examination. The infant may be breathless for several days. After the acute illness, it is common for the airways to remain sensitive for several weeks, leading to recurrent cough and wheeze.
There is a possible link with later asthma: possible explanations are that bronchiolitis causes asthma by inducing long term inflammation, or that children who are destined to be asthmatic are more susceptible to develop bronchiolitis.
Complications
- Airway disease, including asthma, later in life
- Respiratory failure
- Additional infection, such as pneumonia
Prognosis
Usually, the symptoms get better within a week, and breathing difficulty usually improves by the third day. The mortality rate is less than 1%.