Squawks, or short

wheeze A wheeze is a continuous, coarse, whistling sound produced in the respiratory airways during breathing. For wheezes to occur, some part of the respiratory tree must be narrowed or obstructed (for example narrowing of the lower respiratory tract ...

s, are brief, "squeaky" sounds; they are also referred to as squeaks. Their waveforms show a sinusoidal pattern with a duration 10 to 100 ms and a frequency between 200 and 800 Hz. Many birds have made sounds which are onomatopoeically described as "squawk". Squawks have been described in bird fancier's disease and other forms of

hypersensitivity pneumonitis Hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP) or extrinsic allergic alveolitis (EAA) is a syndrome caused by the repetitive inhalation of antigens from the environment in susceptible or sensitized people. Common antigens include molds, bacteria, bird dropping ...

. They are also heard in a variety of conditions in which alveolitis is present. In one study they were found in 10% of patients with

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

.Paciej R, Vyshedskiy A, Bana D, Murphy R, Squawks in pneumonia, Thorax 2004;59:177–179

References

{{Respiratory system symptoms and signs Symptoms and signs: Respiratory system Bird sounds Onomatopoeia