Pediatric somatic cough syndrome attributed to COVID-19-related events

Abstract

Somatic cough syndrome (psychogenic cough) is a known cause of persistent cough, particularly in children. We report three cases of pediatric somatic cough syndrome attributed to COVID-19—related events.

Case 1: A 14-year-old adolescent male presented with persistent dry cough for 4 months after COVID-19. He was unable to attend school owing to the cough; however, he denied nighttime cough. Although he coughed throughout the consultation, he had no cough during laryngoscopic examination. We diagnosed the patient with somatic cough syndrome following exclusion of other physical abnormalities and based on the characteristic nature of the cough.

Cases 2 and 3: An 11-year-old adolescent female and 13-year-old adolescent male, respectively had persistent dry cough for more than 40 days after they received the COVID-19 vaccine. The patients had no physical abnormalities, except for mild asthma in the adolescent male. The adolescent female and male had a dry and honking cough, respectively; however, both patients denied nighttime cough. Although we observed cough in both patients in the consultation room, they did not cough during laryngoscopic examination. Based on these features, we diagnosed both patients with somatic cough syndrome.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected social life and also children’s physical and mental health. Somatic cough syndrome in the aforementioned cases may be attributable to conditioning of coughing associated with COVID-19, fear of long-COVID, or anxiety regarding the adverse effects of COVID-19 vaccines. Our patients’ cough improved 2–6 months after diagnosis. A multidimensional approach is important to treat children with suspected somatic cough syndrome, considering the psychological effects of COVID-19.