Symptoms in children

In children, signs and symptoms of epiglottitis may develop within a matter of hours, including:

• Fever
• Severe sore throat
• Abnormal, high-pitched sound when breathing in (stridor)
• Difficult and painful swallowing
• Drooling
• Anxious, restless behavior
• Feeling better when sitting up or leaning forward

Symptoms in adults

For adults, signs and symptoms may develop more slowly, over days rather than hours. Signs and symptoms may include:

• Severe sore throat
• Fever
• A muffled or hoarse voice
• Abnormal, high-pitched sound when breathing in (stridor)
• Difficulty breathing
• Difficulty swallowing
• Drooling

Epiglottitis is caused by an infection or an injury.

Infection

In the past, a common cause of swelling and inflammation of the epiglottis and surrounding tissues was infection with Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) bacteria. Hib is responsible for a number of serious conditions, the most common of which is meningitis. Hib is now much less common in developed countries due to Hib immunization in children.

Hib spreads through infected droplets coughed or sneezed into the air. It's possible to harbor Hib in your nose and throat without becoming sick — though you still can spread the bacteria to others.

In adults, other bacteria and viruses also can cause inflammation of the epiglottis, including:

• Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus), another bacterium that can cause meningitis, pneumonia, ear infection and blood infection (septicemia)
• Streptococcus A, B and C, a group of bacteria that can cause diseases ranging from strep throat to blood infection
• Staphylococcus aureus, a bacterium that causes skin infections and other diseases including pneumonia and toxic shock syndrome

Injury

Physical injury, such as a direct blow to the throat, can cause epiglottitis. So can burns from drinking very hot or caustic liquids.

You also may develop signs and symptoms similar to those of epiglottitis if you:

• Swallow a chemical that burns your throat
• Swallow a foreign object
• Smoke drugs, such as crack cocaine

Certain factors increase the risk of developing epiglottitis, including:

• Being male. Epiglottitis affects more males than females.
• Having a weakened immune system. If your immune system has been weakened by illness or medication, you're more susceptible to the bacterial infections that may cause epiglottitis.
• Lacking adequate vaccination. Delayed or skipped immunizations can leave a child vulnerable to Hib and increases the risk of epiglottitis.

Epiglottitis can cause a number of complications, including:

• Respiratory failure. The epiglottis is a small, movable "lid" just above the larynx that prevents food and drink from entering your windpipe. But if the epiglottis becomes swollen — either from infection or from injury — the airway narrows and may become completely blocked. This can lead to respiratory failure — a life-threatening condition in which the level of oxygen in the blood drops dangerously low or the level of carbon dioxide becomes excessively high.
• Spreading infection. Sometimes the bacteria that cause epiglottitis cause infections elsewhere in the body, such as pneumonia, meningitis or a bloodstream infection.