What should you know about cold and wheezing?

A viral cold may inflame the nose, throat and breathing tubes, producing a high-pitched sound when air moves through narrowed airways. Mucus and coughing can add to the noise. Wheezing may also occur with asthma, acute bronchitis, allergic rhinitis or COPD; in young children, bronchiolitis is another possibility. An episode after a new food, medicine or insect sting can signal anaphylaxis and is an emergency. Wheezing itself is a symptom, so its cause cannot be confirmed from sound alone.

Rest, drink fluids if you can swallow comfortably, avoid smoke and use a humidified environment if it feels soothing. Follow an inhaler plan already prescribed for you; do not borrow someone else’s inhaler or start antibiotics without clinical advice. Note when the wheeze began, whether it follows exercise or an exposure, and whether you can speak in full sentences. A clinician may listen to your chest and decide whether an inhaler, nebuliser treatment or other care is appropriate.

Seek emergency help for severe breathlessness, blue or grey lips, faintness, confusion, swelling of the tongue or throat, or wheezing that began suddenly after an exposure. Arrange prompt medical review if breathing is getting harder, you have chest pain, a high fever, or the wheeze is not settling. Children with rapid breathing, poor feeding, unusual sleepiness or pulling-in of the ribs need urgent assessment.

Could this be asthma, acute bronchitis or another airway problem? Do I need a breathing test or a prescribed reliever? What symptoms should make me seek emergency care?