- With Mayo Clinic emeritus consultant
Jay L. Hoecker, M.D.
read biographyclose windowBiography of
Jay L. Hoecker, M.D.
Jay L. Hoecker, M.D.
Dr. Jay Hoecker, an emeritus consultant in the Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, brings valuable expertise to MayoClinic.com in general and primary care pediatrics. He has a particular interest in infectious diseases of children.
Dr. Hoecker, a Fort Worth, Texas, native, is certified as a pediatrician by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. He was trained at Washington University's St. Louis Children's Hospital, and in infectious diseases at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. He has been with Mayo Clinic since 1989.
"The World Wide Web is revolutionizing the availability and distribution of information, including health information about children and families," Dr. Hoecker says. "The evolution of the Web has included greater safety, privacy and accuracy over time, making the quality and access to children's health information immediate, practical and useful. I am happy to be a part of this service to patients from a trusted name in medicine, to use and foster all the good the Web has to offer children and their families."
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Question
Croup treatment: Does high humidity relieve symptoms?
My mother and I are having a disagreement about whether steam treatment relieves croup symptoms. She says that her experience as a mother tells her it does. But I say it doesn't. Who's right?
Answer
from Jay L. Hoecker, M.D.
You're both right. Changes in humidity and air temperature have long been considered useful in managing mild croup at home. But in a 2006 study, high humidity provided no benefit for cases of moderate to severe croup treated in an emergency room.
The primary symptom of croup is a distinctive barking cough caused by inflammation around the vocal cords. Other signs and symptoms include fever and a hoarse voice.
For mild croup, use a cool-air humidifier in your child's bedroom or have your child breathe the warm, moist air in a steamy bathroom. Weather permitting, you may also wrap your child in a coat or blanket and stand in the cool night air. For severe croup — such as a barking cough accompanied by noisy, labored breathing (stridor) — a doctor may prescribe corticosteroids, epinephrine or another medication to open your child's airways.
- Woods CR. Pharmacologic and supportive interventions for croup. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Aug. 27, 2008.
- Woods CR. Approach to the management of croup. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Aug. 27, 2008.
- Scolnik D, et al. Controlled delivery of high versus low humidity versus mist therapy for croup in emergency departments. The Journal of the American Medical Association. 2006;295(11):1274-1280.
