Illness Duration Table
The following table shows the average illness duration in days and time to symptom resolution in days for 50% and 90% of children with common respiratory illnesses:
| Illness | Average duration of illness (days) | Symptom resolution by Day 3 (%) | Symptom resolution by Day 7 (%) |
| Acute otitis media | 2–8 depending on self-resolution and response to therapy | 50 | 90 |
| Viral sore throat/tonsillitis/pharyngitis | 2–7 | 63–66 | |
| Streptococcal pharyngitis | 3.5 without antibiotics 1–2 with antibiotics | | 100 |
| Common cold**† | 10–14 | | 50 90 by 15 days |
**Symptom resolution is reported at days 10 and 15 instead of day 7.
†There is much overlap with sinusitis, and it is persistence of symptoms or sudden worsening of symptoms that raise suspicion of bacterial sinusitis.
Reference: Thompson M, Vodicka TA, Blair PS, et al. Duration of symptoms of respiratory tract infections in children: systematic review. BMJ. 2013;347:f7027 doi: 10.1136/bmj.f7027