Frequency of protracted bacterial bronchitis and management pre-respiratory referral.

Aim: To determine the frequency of protracted bacterial bronchitis (PBB) in children referred to tertiary care with chronic cough and describe management prior to referral.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study of all new patients with a history of ≥4 weeks of cough seen at the only tertiary paediatric outpatient respiratory service in Western Australia between July 2018 and June 2019. Medical records were reviewed until a final diagnosis was documented or otherwise for a period of 18 months.

Results: PBB was the most common cause and comprised 37.9% of all children referred to tertiary respiratory care with chronic cough. In children with PBB, the median cough duration at the time of first specialist review was 5.1 months (IQR 2.1-12.0 months). The most common referral source of PBB was primary practice (40.9%) and the most common working diagnosis pre-referral was asthma (15.9%). Seventy-eight percent of children with PBB had an ongoing cough at their first respiratory review, and of these, only 13.5% had been prescribed 4 weeks of antibiotics prior to their respiratory review. Asthma treatment had been prescribed for 34.0% of children with PBB.

Conclusion: PBB is the most common cause of chronic cough in children referred to tertiary respiratory care and is frequently misdiagnosed and undertreated pre-referral. There is a need to facilitate diagnosis and optimal management of PBB in primary care, which could result in earlier symptom resolution and potentially limit disease progression to bronchiectasis.