Breathing with difficulty and noisily.
Whistling noises in the bronchi when breathing. Wheezing is often found in people with asthma and is also associated with bronchitis and heart disease.
A high-pitched, whistling sound made when air passes over a partial obstruction in the airways. Asthma is the most common cause of recurring wheezing. But it can also be caused by other conditions, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), congestive heart failure, a tumor in the airways, or a foreign particle, such as a piece of food, lodged in an airway.
The musical, high-pitched, whistling sound of air passing over a partial obstruction in the airways. Wheezing is caused by an impediment to airflow in the airways. Asthma is the most common cause of recurrent wheezing. Other diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), can cause a narrowing of the airways that results in wheezing. A localized narrowing of the airways may be caused by the presence of a tumor. Alternatively, there may be a foreign particle, such as a piece of food, lodged in an airway. Wheezing can also be a temporary event that many people experience for unknown or medically insignificant reasons, such as a transitory response to exposure of an airborne irritant.
A popular name applied to the various sounds produced in the chest when the bronchial tubes are narrowed. It is applied particularly to the long-drawn breathing of asthma, and to the whistling or purring noises that accompany breathing in cases of bronchitis.
The production of whistling sounds during difficult breathing such as occurs in asthma, coryza, croup, and other respiratory disorders.