Honey for acute cough in children

Abstract BackgroundCough causes concern for parents and is a major cause of outpatient visits. It can impact on quality of life, cause anxiety and affect sleep in parents and children. Several remedies, including honey, have been used to alleviate cough symptoms. ObjectivesTo evaluate the effectiveness of honey for acute cough in children in ambulatory settings. Search methodsWe searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library Issue 4, 2011) which contains the Cochrane Acute Respiratory Infections Group's Specialised Register; MEDLINE (1950 to December week 4, 2011); EMBASE (1990 to January 2012); CINAHL (1981 to January 2012); Web of Science (2000 to January 2012); AMED (1985 to January 2012); LILACS (1982 to January 2012); and CAB abstracts (2009 to January 2012). Selection criteriaRandomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing honey given alone, or in combination with antibiotics, versus nothing, placebo or other over‐the‐counter (OTC) cough medications to participants aged from two to 18 years for acute cough in ambulatory settings. Data collection and analysisTwo review authors independently screened search results for eligible studies and extracted data on reported outcomes. Main resultsWe included two RCTs of high risk of bias involving 265 children. The studies compared the effect of honey with dextromethorphan, diphenhydramine and 'no treatment' on symptomatic relief of cough using the 7‐point Likert scale.Honey was bet...
Source: Evidence-Based Child Health: A Cochrane Review Journal - Category: Pediatrics Authors: Tags: Intervention Review Source Type: research