Can AI Diagnose a Cough in Children?

AI health checks make up one of the fastest-growing areas in pediatric telehealth and mobile medical technology. However, since this technology is so new, parents may wonder whether AI cough checks actually work.

The answer is: yes! AI that is backed by clinical algorithms can help you analyze and identify the cause of a cough in children.

Here is a look at how AI cough assessments work, and what you can count on them to catch.

How AI Analyzes a Child’s Cough

An experienced pediatrician can often guess what’s wrong the second they hear a child cough in the waiting room, just by listening to the sound of the cough.

AI does essentially the same thing: it looks for specific “audio biomarkers”.

By using advanced acoustic AI (machine learning models trained on millions of recorded human sounds), a smartphone microphone can analyze the subtle frequencies, timing, and pitch of a child’s cough to help figure out what is happening in their airways.

How an AI Cough Checker Works

When you or a doctor records a few seconds of a child coughing into an app, the AI instantly breaks the sound down into data points, evaluating things like:

  • The wetness or dryness of the cough (measuring the presence of mucus or fluid vibrating in the lower airways)
  • The pitch and frequency of the cough (which gives a clue about restricted or narrowed airways)
  • The waveform (isolating the unique acoustic signature of specific respiratory illnesses)

Remember: This technology isn’t designed to completely replace doctors; rather, it’s meant to bridge a major gap in telemedicine, and help parents decide when to visit a clinic.

What Respiratory Conditions Can an AI Cough Check Detect?

Clinical studies have shown that AI cough analysis can be 81% to 97% accurate in distinguishing between common childhood respiratory issues.

If your child is struggling to breathe, breathing very rapidly, or has a high fever, you should always consult a healthcare provider immediately, regardless of what an app says.

AI Cough checks are particularly adept at flagging these four common conditions:

1. Croup

The AI easily recognizes the signature, harsh, brassy, barking sound caused by swelling around a child’s vocal cords.

2. Pneumonia

It can pick up on deep, heavy, fluid-filled acoustic patterns that indicate a lower respiratory tract infection.

3. Asthma and Bronchiolitis

The AI detects high-pitched, faint wheezing sounds, often occurring right as the child exhales, which indicate that the tiny airways in the lungs are inflamed or narrowed.

4. The Common Cold

An AI Cough Checker can identify standard upper-respiratory, non-productive coughs that are typically associated with the common cold.

The LAM Cough Check Helps You Decide When to Go to the Doctor

The Little Angel Medical Cough Check was designed by a team of doctors and engineers who are also parents. We understand that taking a sick child to a clinic requires a – a lot of effort. That’s why we developed an app that can help you decide when you need to go to the doctor, and when a cough only requires home treatment.

Are you a parent who needs to make an informed decision about your child’s health? Try the LAM Child Health App and get access to multiple health checks and trackers, and the expert assistance of the LIA pediatric triage assistant.

Download a free trial today!