title: Survey on attitudes of Italian pediatricians toward cough.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Children's cough is a daily concern for most pediatricians. The management of both acute and chronic cough requires a systematic and comprehensive approach. Despite the approved protocols for management, the pediatric assessment of cough and the corresponding prescribing attitude frequently do not fit these protocols, which can be affected by parental suggestions - sometimes substantially.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The objective of this study was to investigate both the perception and the behavior of a representative sample of Italian pediatricians toward cough in real life.
  
  
  METHODS
  A specific questionnaire consisting of 18 questions was prepared. The questionnaire was completed by 300 pediatricians (all members of PAIDOSS: Italian National Observatory on Health of Childhood and Adolescence) who represented ~300,000 children.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A vast majority of children have cough throughout the year (99.3% of respondents have cough during autumn/winter and 64.7% in spring/summer). Allergic disease is the most frequent suspected cause of chronic cough in children (53%), and this is supported by the high demand for consultations: 73% seek the opinion of allergologists, 62% of otorhinolaryngologists and only 33% of pulmonologists. The majority of pediatricians (92%) reported that they prescribe therapy in acute cough regardless of cough guidelines. Moreover, the survey pointed out the abuse of aerosol therapy (26% in acute cough and 38% in chronic cough) and of antibiotics prescription (22% in acute cough and 42% in chronic cough).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our survey suggests that some Italian pediatricians' therapeutic attitudes should be substantially improved in order to achieve better management of cough in children and to minimize the burden of cough.
authors.affiliation: Italian Association for Cough Study, Bologna.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zanasi
authors.affiliation: National Observatory of Health in Childhood and Adolescence (PAIDOSS: Osservatorio Nazionale sulla Salute dell'Infanzia e dell'Adolescenza), Rome.
authors.forename: Luigi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Morcaldi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Salesi Children's Hospital, Ancona.
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cazzato
authors.affiliation: Department of Specialist, Diagnostic and Experimental Medicine, Respiratory and Critical Care Unit, S.Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, University of Bologna, Bologna.
authors.forename: Massimiliano
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mazzolini
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milan Bicocca, Milan.
authors.forename: Marzia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lecchi
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna.
authors.forename: Antonio Maria
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Morselli-Labate
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna.
authors.forename: Marianna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mastroroberto
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Respiratory Pharmacoeconomics and Pharmacoepidemiology, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: Roberto W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Dal Negro
keywords: acute cough; chronic cough; cough impact; cough in children; pediatricians’ prescriptions