Table 3 Value of historical pointers in predicting specific cause of cough in children.
Historical pointer | Sensitivity (%) | Specificity (%) | NPV (%) | PPV (%) | LR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Moist cough | 96 | 26 | 73 | 74 | 1.29 |
Duration >6 months | 42 | 68 | 34 | 74 | 1.30 |
Exertional dyspnoea | 38 | 65 | 32 | 70 | 1.06 |
Chronic dyspnoea† | 7 | 97 | 32 | 83 | 2.25 |
Recurrent pneumonia* | 7 | 94 | 31 | 71 | 1.12 |
Haemoptysis | 7 | 97 | 32 | 83 | 2.25 |
Swallowing problems‡ | 25 | 71 | 30 | 65 | 0.85 |
NPV, negative predictive value; PPV, positive predictive value; LR, likelihood ratio.
*Defined as ⩾2 episodes of pneumonia in a year or ⩾3 episodes ever.
†Child appears short of breath as defined by parents' awareness of breathing and/or increased respiratory rate during period of the coughing illness.
‡Defined as coughing associated with swallowing liquids or solids one or more time/day throughout coughing illness.