Abstract
Respiratory tract infections in children are the most frequent diseases of childhood. Since very early age, predisposed individuals develop chronic noninfectious inflammatory processes (allergies, extraesophageal reflux disease) that compromise the primary barrier and immune system of the respiratory tract mucosa and thus make them more susceptible to acute superinfections.
Respiratory tract infections can be anatomically divided into upper respiratory tract infections, i.e. rhinosinusitis, otitis, tonsillopharyngitis, and laryngitis, and lower respiratory tract infections, i.e. tracheobronchitis and bronchopneumonia. Given the authors specialization, the paper mainly deals with upper respiratory tract issues.
The diagnostic process involves history-taking, aimed particularly at the duration and nature of symptoms typical for certain pathological conditions. Local examination is mainly based on thorough endoscopy of the upper respiratory tract, including otomicroscopic and functional examination of the ear.
Auxiliary examinations used include both laboratory methods, such as microbiological culture and blood tests aimed at detecting inflammatory markers, allergies, and some specific antibodies, and imaging techniques, particularly an appropriately indicated CT scan of the paranasal sinuses. Specialized investigations (sweat chloride, ciliary motility) are particularly used in order to rule out systemic disease.