Breathing is very difficult. Stridor is usually present only with crying or coughing. As the disease becomes worse, stridor also occurs when a child is sleeping or relaxed. It is usually part of a cold. Swelling of the vocal cords causes hoarseness.
Stridor occurs as the opening between the vocal cords becomes more narrow.
Expected Course Croup usually lasts for 5 to 6 days and generally gets worse at night. During this time, it can change from mild to severe many times. The worse symptoms are seen in children under 3 years of age. Inhalation of warm mist Warm moist air seems to work best to relax the vocal cords and break the stridor. The simplest way to provide this is to have your child breathe through a warm, wet washcloth placed loosely over his nose and mouth.