ARVI in children: choice of approach in the treatment of cough

According to official statistics, acute respiratory infections (ARI) always rank highest among the infectious diseases, especially among children. In Russia, the annual rate of ARI is at least 70–80,000 diseases per 100,000 children’s population (3.3 times higher than in adults) without downward trend. Reduction and relief of symptoms is one of the main objectives in the treatment of acute respiratory infections in children. Fever, runny nose, sore throat, and cough are the most common symptoms that affect the health condition of children. Cough is one of the top five reasons for patients to seek medical treatment, as it is a common symptom in both outpatient and hospital practice. In particular, the majority of acute and chronic bronchopulmonary diseases are almost always accompanied by cough, and patients with chronic cough of unclear etiology account for 10 to 38% of patients in the practice of a pulmonologist. Many articles give much attention to cough and its causes, describe treatment methods. The rational choice and use of antitussive therapy in pediatrics involve the knowledge of at least two main factors: the causes of cough and the features of the mechanism of cough reflex in children, as well as the mechanisms of action of antitussive drugs used. The necessity to treat cough as such i.e. to prescribe the so-called antitussive therapy arises when a child has unproductive, dry, persistent cough. The article discusses the potential causes and mechanisms of the production of cough in children, in particular dry cough, and considers using central and peripheral antitussive drugs in paediatric practice. Special attention is given to the efficacy and safety of the antitussive drug butamirate citrate