Background: The effectiveness of montelukast for wheezing in young children is not clear. We aimed to evaluate whether the use of montelukast in the treatment of wheezing affects the number of attacks in children aged 1 to 6 years.

Methods: This is a single center study. It was conducted between August 2019-2020. Children with aged 0-6 years old with a wheezing complaint who applied to the pediatric allergy and immunology outpatient clinic were included in the study. Modified asthma predictive index of the patients were evaluated. It was classified as Episodic Viral Wheezing (EVW) or Multiple Trigger Wheezing (MTW) based on the type of wheezing. Montelukast treatment was started and the number of attacks was checked during five months.

Results: The total of 141 children who applied with wheezing complaints were included in the study. The majority of the patients were boys (n = 99). The mean age of the children was 4.2 ± 1.5 years. The median number of attacks before treatment was 2 (2-3). In 2.8% of the patients, eczema, in 12.8% of them, rhinitis and in 26.7% of them, elevated eosinophils were detected. IgE levels were 148.25 ± 279.20 IU/mL. According to the number of attacks before treatment, there was a significant decrease in the number of attacks in followup (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: In this study, montelukast has been shown to reduce the number of EVW attacks and we believe montelukast may be a potential treatment option for EVW in preschool children.