wheezing
Pronunciation: HWEE-zing
A high-pitched, musical respiratory sound produced by turbulent airflow through narrowed intrathoracic airways, most commonly heard on expiration in pediatric patients.
Full Definition
Wheezing is a continuous, adventitious lung sound resulting from partial obstruction or narrowing of lower airways, frequently associated with bronchospasm, mucus plugging, or airway edema in children. It is a cardinal symptom in pediatric asthma and bronchiolitis and must be distinguished from stridor, which originates in upper airways. In clinical documents, 'wheezing' is always one word and lowercase unless beginning a sentence; editors should flag the misspelling 'wheazing.' The term carries important diagnostic weight in pediatric pulmonology because recurrent wheezing before age three is a key risk factor stratified by validated indices such as the Asthma Predictive Index.
Usage
Usage note: Always lowercase and one word. Do not confuse with stridor (inspiratory, upper airway) or rhonchi (lower-pitched, not musical).
In Context
- "The case report described persistent expiratory wheezing unresponsive to two albuterol treatments." — Case report editing
- "Authors sometimes incorrectly hyphenate 'high-pitched wheezing' as a compound adjective when it follows a linking verb; editors should remove the hyphen in such constructions." — Journal manuscript copy-editing