Cough causes, types and treatment of cough. How to identify a dry or wet cough: symptoms and treatment methods. Clinical characteristics of cough

In this article, you will learn about effective methods of cough treatment, including folk remedies, and what to do if the cough does not go away.

What is a cough

The outcome of the treatment of any health problem depends to a large extent on correct diagnosis. That is why it is recommended not to self-medicate, but to contact specialists in a timely manner. In the event of a cough, it is necessary to correctly assess the patient's condition, the nature and duration of symptoms in order to provide an accurate conclusion.

By type, doctors divide dry and wet cough. Often the disease goes away with the transition from a dry cough to a wet one, this makes it clear that microbes have begun to be excreted from the body. Here it is worth looking at the nature of sputum.

The main causes of dry cough

If a dry cough does not go away during an infectious disease, this may be due to the following reasons:

• Very weak immune system.
• Stay indoors with dry air.
• Abuse of smoking and alcohol.
• Insufficient fluid intake during illness.
• Complication of the disease.

Dry cough can be a symptom of 50 different diseases, among which a special place is occupied by:

1. Tuberculosis. Doctors say that by the age of 20-30 everyone is infected with Koch's bacillus, discovered by the German doctor Robert Koch. A decrease in immunity can activate mycobacterium, the causative agent of tuberculosis, then a person may develop tuberculosis of the bronchi, trachea, larynx or lungs. This disease just begins with an obsessive dry cough. There is also a general weakness of the body, night sweats, dizziness, poor sleep.
2. Laryngitis, tracheitis, pharyngitis. Laryngitis and pharyngitis affect different organs - the larynx and pharynx, respectively. If you often inhale dusty, cold or dry air, you can “earn” tracheitis, which accompanies a painful cough.
3. Allergy. Allergic reactions can occur to plant pollen, dust, wool, mites, etc. Usually, an allergic cough makes itself felt when the irritant enters the membrane of the larynx.
4. Bronchial asthma. This pathology is characterized by chronic dry cough and asthma attacks.
5. Worm infestations. Each person should undergo prophylaxis against worms in order to prevent the occurrence of unpleasant situations. So roundworms can linger in the lung tissue, awakening a dry cough.

Causes of wet cough

With the final stage of pneumonia, a cough with copious secretions can be observed. Such symptoms are also characteristic of chronic bronchitis and tracheitis. Purulent sputum can symbolize the addition of a bacterial infection, which is typical for SARS. With the flu, sputum remains a light transparent color.

Bloody sputum may indicate pulmonary tuberculosis, heart problems, or lung cancer. This phenomenon can also be a sign of a burst blood vessel. In any case, you should consult a doctor.

Force of cough

A slight cough can signal chronic diseases and often worries patients due to irritation of the larynx or pharynx. Also, such symptoms can occur in people who abuse smoking, due to the dustiness of the room or allergies.

A strong, hacking, painful, and continuous cough is often a symptom of acute lower respiratory tract infections or the development of infections. If it does not go away within a few days, it is advisable to consult a doctor so as not to aggravate the situation.

How to treat a cough

Cough can be accompanied by various diseases, and in order to choose the right course of treatment, you need to find out the cause of the disease, as well as visit a doctor. All cough medicines are divided into expectorant, thinning and acting on the cough center. Also popular methods of treatment are folk remedies, inhalations.

During the treatment period, it is important to drink plenty of fluids, at least 2 liters of water per day, to thin the sputum. If the cough is associated with throat diseases, then mineral water is used as a liquid, which alleviates the general condition of the patient.

Effective remedies

The main function of expectorants is to secrete sputum. Resorptive drugs are aimed at increasing the amount of mucus and have a thinning effect. Means with a reflex action are used to activate the cough and vomiting center for sputum discharge. Mucolytics thin the sputum and help the patient to switch from a dry cough to an expectorant, which leads to a successful recovery.

These cough remedies are divided into synthetic and enzymatic. Combined drugs, such as mucolytics, are prescribed only by a doctor. As for drugs that are aimed at suppressing the cough center, they can be narcotic and non-narcotic in nature. Narcotic drugs are made on the basis of morphine and codeine. Non-narcotic drugs are usually used for dry cough, for diseases such as pleurisy or whooping cough.

How to choose cough pills

The most common cough tablets:

• "Mukaltin". This remedy, the main active element of which is marshmallow extract, is sold in almost all pharmacies and is very popular in treatment. The drug helps to speed up the process of sputum discharge. Contraindications include individual intolerance to the components of the tablets, duodenal ulcer and stomach ulcer. Tablets 50 mg, 10 pieces cost about 15 rubles.
• "Ambrobene". This drug with the active element ambroxol hydrochloride is prescribed for pneumonia, bronchitis, asthma and other problems associated with the difficulties of sputum discharge and its increased viscosity. "Ambrobene" is not suitable for patients with ulcers, women in early pregnancy, and also with sensitivity to tablet components. Tablets 30 mg, 20 pieces cost about 144 rubles.
• Codelac. Suitable for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, acute and chronic bronchitis, pneumonia, bronchiectasis. The drug helps to cope with the difficulties of sputum discharge. Not suitable for pregnant women, people with bronchial asthma, hypersensitivity to the components of the product, during lactation. The cost of 10 tablets is 110 rubles.

Cough syrup treatment

For the treatment of cough, you can take special syrups, from popular remedies it is worth noting:

• "Lazolvan". Mucolytic and expectorant syrup has functions that lead to increased flow and transport of mucus, which leads to better sputum discharge and significantly alleviates cough. Volume - 100 ml, price - 244 rubles.
• "Doctor Mom". The product is made on a vegetable basis, copes well with laryngitis, dry cough and throat diseases. The tool works slowly but effectively. A bottle of syrup with a volume of 100 ml with a measuring cup costs about 146 rubles.
• "Primrose Syrup". Antitussive product from Gerbion is made on a plant basis with the content of primrose root extract, used for bronchitis, tracheitis and other diseases of the upper respiratory tract. A bottle of syrup with a volume of 150 ml costs about 251 rubles.

Antitussive folk remedies

1. Boil a glass of milk and add 2 tbsp. dry figs. Bring the liquid to a boil again and lower the heat to let the mixture steep for half an hour. Milk, whether goat's or cow's, is often used as one of the most effective foods for colds, it thins phlegm and helps to expel it.
2. Herbal preparations can also help alleviate the condition, for this, prepare an infusion of plants such as coltsfoot (two parts), marshmallow (two parts) and oregano (one part). Take the prepared remedy repeatedly for half a glass.
3. If there are viburnum berries and honey at home, you can mix them in equal proportions and take a spoonful for coughing during the day.
   There are a lot of options for treating cough with folk methods, but if your health has not improved in 5 days, it's time to see a doctor. There are situations in which a normal cough goes into another, more serious stage, which requires the use of antibiotics.

Using honey for cough

As an antitussive, many use fresh liquid honey, which increases the secretion of saliva and mucus, resulting in a softening of the throat. "Sweet amber" helps to increase the production of substances that suppress the cough center.
To facilitate the process of sputum discharge, it is recommended to drink milk with honey. You can add a piece of butter, which will help with a scratchy throat. If an adult needs one spoonful of honey per glass of milk, then children need half a spoonful per glass of milk. Honey is contraindicated for children under one year old.

Dissolving honey in hot liquids, as well as heating this product strongly, is not worth it, since in this case all its beneficial properties are destroyed.

lingering cough

To look at changes in the nature of the cough in dynamics, it is recommended to undergo x-rays. A cough that does not go away for a long time often goes away along with other symptoms. So the patient can be found wheezing in the lungs, stuffy nose, heaviness in the chest.

Application of inhalation

Inhalation refers to the method of transporting drugs to the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract. This procedure has the following actions:

• Promotes the transition of a dry cough into a wet one, improving the formation of mucus.
• With a wet cough, it awakens the evacuation of sputum, thereby accelerating recovery.
• Moisturizing the mucous membrane, inhalation helps to eliminate a dry and painful cough for a while.

Usually inhalation is used for any cough. But here it is worth noting some contraindications. Inhalation is not prescribed at high body temperature, it is contraindicated in case of observation of sputum with a purulent substance, bleeding from the nose, hemoptysis, serious problems with the cardiovascular system, severe diseases of the respiratory system, arrhythmias.

Causes of cough. Does coughing always mean respiratory problems?

Indeed, in most cases, coughing indicates the defeat of the respiratory tract by some kind of disease. In this case, often, coughing is the symptom of the disease that makes the patient see a doctor. The question: is cough always a symptom of a disease of the respiratory system, is very interesting for a more detailed consideration. This is especially true for chronic cough. Before considering the list of diseases that can cause cough, we will describe some of the characteristics of cough in order to subsequently describe the different types of cough in various diseases. Knowledge of the elementary features of cough in various diseases can be extremely important not only for medical professionals, but for all people who are faced with this problem.

In order to determine the type of cough and its belonging to any disease, you need to pay attention to its main characteristics: the duration, strength of the cough, the moment of the day when the cough is the strongest, the cough is wet or dry, the nature of the sputum that is released during coughing, the timbre of the cough , the presence of other symptoms of the disease.

How long does the cough last?
From the point of view of clinical development, we distinguish between acute, protracted and chronic cough.
Acute cough - present for up to 3 weeks. Acute cough is characterized by the constancy of symptoms, that is, the cough is present almost all the time. Acute cough is characteristic of most acute respiratory viral infections (influenza, parainfluenza, RS infection, adenovirus infection), acute bronchitis, pneumonia, pharyngitis. Acute cough, as a rule, is exclusively protective in nature and helps to cleanse the body of germs and sputum.
Protracted cough. Unlike acute cough, persistent cough lasts from 3 weeks to 3 months. A persistent cough is less persistent than an acute one. It is quite possible that the cough develops in waves (the appearance and disappearance of a cough after a few days) or its appearance only at certain times of the day (for example, in the morning or at night). A lingering cough also most often indicates a lesion of the respiratory tract, however, unlike an acute cough, a lingering cough indicates a slow course of the disease and the possibility of its transition to a chronic form.
Chronic cough. The diagnosis of chronic cough is established when the cough lasts more than 3 months. Immediately, we note that chronic cough can be a sign of very dangerous diseases: chronic bronchitis, bronchial asthma, heart failure, tumors of the lungs and respiratory tract, tuberculosis. Therefore, patients with chronic cough need the most thorough examination and treatment. In some cases, chronic cough can occur in nervously ill people (without certain diseases of the respiratory system), as well as in people exposed to adverse environmental factors: dust, smoke, corrosive gases. Smokers have a chronic cough - it can be both a sign of prolonged irritation of the bronchi with tobacco smoke, and a sign of one of the complications of smoking (bronchitis, lung cancer).
Chronic cough is usually intermittent. Chronic cough is characterized by periods of exacerbation and remission, as well as cough fixation, that is, the occurrence of cough at a certain time of the day. Exacerbations of chronic cough are associated with an exacerbation of the disease that caused it or with the impact on the body of any irritating factors (cold air, dust, allergens).
Chronic cough, as a phenomenon, loses its protective role and may be the cause of the development of some disorders of the respiratory system: emphysema, bronchiectasis, spontaneous pneumothorax, disruption of the heart, the formation of a hernia of internal organs, etc.

Strong or weak cough?
Usually, the strength of the cough depends on the severity of the disease: acute respiratory diseases are accompanied by a strong, "hysterical" cough. Chronic diseases - are manifested by a mild cough (coughing). A particularly severe cough is characteristic of such respiratory diseases as whooping cough (convulsive cough), acute tracheitis or acute bronchitis caused by influenza or other acute respiratory viral infections. Coughing is often observed in chronic smokers, patients with chronic bronchitis, tuberculosis, lung cancer. In chronic cough, the transition from coughing to hysterical cough always means an aggravation of the course of the disease.

What time of day does the cough appear?
The appearance of a cough at a certain time of the day can be a fairly characteristic sign of a particular disease. A cough that lasts all day is typical for acute respiratory infections (flu, parainfluenza, whooping cough), as well as for acute laryngitis, acute tracheitis, acute bronchitis. Cough that occurs in the morning is typical for patients with chronic bronchitis, bronchiectasis, with a lung abscess. Night cough is typical for patients with heart failure, patients with lung cancer, patients with tuberculosis. Often, a nocturnal cough is the only symptom of gastroesophageal reflux, chronic sinusitis, or chronic rhinitis. Allergic cough occurs at any time upon contact with an allergen. Allergic coughs and asthmatic coughs are characterized by a seasonal appearance in spring or autumn.

Wet or dry cough? What kind of sputum?
The terms "dry" or "wet" cough require further clarification. It is customary to talk about dry cough in those cases when, when coughing, either no sputum is secreted at all, or very meager amounts of sputum are released. Wet cough accompanied by copious sputum. Sputum is produced by the bronchi and trachea. Microbes and their poisons are excreted from the body along with sputum when coughing. During many diseases, there is often a transition from a dry cough to a wet one, as well as a change in the nature of sputum (for example, from watery to purulent). Such a change in the nature of cough, as well as a change in the nature of sputum, depends on the natural development of the disease. With many viral infections (influenza, parainfluenza, RS infection), the cough is initially dry; the appearance of purulent sputum suggests that a bacterial infection has joined the viral infection - this development is typical for most SARS.
Dry cough is also characteristic of chronic pharyngitis, the initial stages of pneumonia, lung cancer, the initial forms of tuberculosis, gastroesophageal reflux (gastric juice from the stomach into the esophagus), chronic sinusitis, pleural diseases (systemic connective tissue diseases, tumors), for patients with heart failure for allergy sufferers.
An important cough with copious discharge is characteristic of the final stages of pneumonia (croupous pneumonia), chronic bronchitis, and tracheitis. Very abundant sputum is observed with bronchiectasis.
The nature of the sputum also indicates the nature of the disease - watery sputum at the onset of ARI indicates a "purely viral" infection, while purulent sputum is a clear sign of a bacterial infection. In heart failure, scanty amounts of sputum produced by coughing are usually frothy and may be pink in color. The cough of patients with bronchial asthma is also accompanied by the release of scanty viscous, vitreous sputum. The appearance of sputum with blood impurities (hemoptysis) is always an unfavorable sign. If bloody sputum was only once or several times, then this is most likely a consequence of a blood vessel that burst when coughing. Chronic cough with bloody sputum can be a sign of heart failure, pulmonary tuberculosis, lung cancer.

Timbre of cough
In some diseases, the timbre of coughing can be quite characteristic. In acute tracheitis, for example, a loud, chesty cough.
With whooping cough, the cough is painful, periodically interrupted by pauses with a sonorous sigh, which again turn into a cough.
Cough with laryngitis is rough, barking. Usually, along with a cough, patients with laryngitis also complain of hoarseness.
In chronic bronchitis, the cough is deep, muffled.
Patients with bronchial asthma complain of a severe, muffled, suffocating cough.

All of the cough characteristics described above can change over the course of the disease.

Cough is a natural reflex phenomenon that occurs when the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract is irritated by vapors of substances or foreign bodies. A symptom appears as a protective reaction, in which the respiratory tract gets rid of sputum or dust in order to achieve normal breathing.

The symptom manifests itself not only in the form of a dry or wet cough. He has other characteristics that affect the patient's condition. A persistent cough can manifest itself in pathological processes (pneumonia, SARS, bronchitis, etc.) and in mechanical damage to the tracts of food, dust or foreign bodies.

Etiology

Many people are interested in the question of how to treat a cough in a child or an adult patient. But before asking the search for therapy, the doctor and the patient need to understand why the symptom arose. Sore throat and cough occur under the influence of various factors, which in medicine have been divided into several categories:

• mechanical - foreign bodies in the airways, ear canal, swollen lymph nodes, inflammation of the trachea and bronchi;
• allergic;
• chemical - exposure to vapors of chemicals;
• thermal - at low temperature.

Often, a cough does not go away and can reappear for the reason that it irritates the cough zones - the back wall of the larynx, pleura, branching of the trachea and bronchi.

Cough in children and adults should not be ignored, as the symptom may appear in a more severe form, when the sign already points to chronic or serious health problems. Before starting treatment with folk remedies and medicines, doctors need to figure out what ailment the symptom indicates.

Cough wet, dry or any other nature indicates such pathologies:

• - Manifested by a dry cough that develops into a wet one;
• - barking cough, hoarseness of voice;
• - rough, when coughing, severe pain is felt;
• acute bronchitis - severe cough with sputum;
• - a painful attack of coughing, at first dry in nature, and then wet with sputum;
• and - seizures at night when nasal discharge irritates the back of the throat.

As for newborns, the causes of the onset of the symptom in them differ from adults. Often, a cough in infants manifests itself after feeding, when milk enters the respiratory tract. It also manifests itself during a strong salivation, during teething. Cough after eating and with excessive saliva is not a pathological process, therefore, does not require treatment.

Classification

According to the nature of the appearance of the cough, clinicians identified two types of symptom:

• - without sputum. It is divided into two forms - accompanied by pain attacks or sore throat, a decrease in the volume of the voice. And also paroxysmal - characteristic of tracheitis and bronchitis;
• - accompanied by expectoration, wheezing, heaviness and an unpleasant sensation in the chest. Marked with and .

According to the duration of the course, a strong cough in a child and an adult can be of the following forms:

• acute - lasts no more than three weeks with infectious diseases;
• - exceeds the duration of the acute form by several weeks. This type of cough manifests itself in the pathology of the bronchi and lungs, with the accumulation of mucus in the nasopharynx, with mental disorders and frequent use of drugs.

According to the periodicity identified:

• regular - manifests itself in severe attacks, in which a person cannot breathe normally. In a child and an adult, such a cough can be up to vomiting, respiratory arrest and fainting;
• temporary - a single attack of coughing without side effects.

Dry cough

Many people believe that if a cough does not go away for a long time, then this already indicates a pathology, but this is not so. This symptom is a protective reflex in response to various stimuli.

In medicine, it is believed that the dry type of cough is the safest and can be quickly cured. Cough is not manifested in the release of mucus or sputum from the lungs. The patient feels only a slight sore throat, as well as other signs:

• barking character;
• heat;
• labored breathing;

These unpleasant manifestations not only indicate a formed ailment in the body, but also lead to insomnia, headaches and nervous breakdowns. Clinicians argue that an unproductive, that is, dry, attack is more exhausting for the body than another type.

The attending physician, before determining how to quickly cure a cough, must establish the cause of the symptom. Quite often, this symptom is manifested in heavy smokers, but there are other root causes for the appearance of the symptom:

• respiratory infections;
• allergies;
• inflammation of the pharyngeal mucosa;
• pneumonia;
• inflammation in the trachea;
• bronchial asthma;
• tumors.

Cough in a child without fever can manifest itself as a result of passive smoking. Doctors have long been saying that a person who stands next to a smoker is also exposed to danger and exposure to smoke. Therefore, the child may experience a cough that does not go away for a long time and does not indicate the development of pathologies.

Before starting the treatment of a cough in an adult or a child, the patient needs to undergo a series of examinations to establish the exact cause of the appearance of such a symptom. After conducting a diagnosis and establishing an accurate diagnosis, the doctor can decide how to quickly cure a cough at home.

In the course of timely therapy, the patient's condition immediately improves and the obvious symptom subsides. To eliminate cough, various methods of treatment are prescribed:

• the use of medicines;
• physiotherapy;
• inhalation therapy.

As part of drug treatment, the following drugs are prescribed:

• antispasmodics;
• thinning sputum;
• expanding bronchi;
• decongestants;
• sedatives;
• antitussives;
• antibacterial.

If the cough in a baby or an older patient is manifested by allergies, then the patient is prescribed antihistamine drugs, sorbents and bronchodilators.

Wet cough

To answer the question of how to treat a wet cough in a child, the doctor first needs to diagnose this disease in a person. It may be accompanied by the appearance of such a clinic:

• sharp bouts of coughing;
• dyspnea;
• heat;
• loss of appetite;
• wheezing;
• an admixture of blood in the sputum;
• greenish tinge of sputum;
• pain syndrome in the chest;
• nocturnal cough.

Cough and snot, which occur with other signs, are characteristic symptoms of such pathologies:

• and ARVI;
• bronchitis;
• pneumonia;
• bronchial asthma;
• allergies.

Sputum with this symptom is detected in different types. Clinicians have identified 6 main types of mucus:

• plentiful;
• with a rusty tint;
• watery;
• viscous;
• with an admixture of blood;
• purulent.

When a cough with sputum is detected, the patient raises the question of how to cure a cough at home. Only a doctor can give an answer, since the therapy of a symptom directly depends on the intensity of manifestation and type.

During treatment, the patient is allowed to adhere to the following measures:

• the use of folk remedies is allowed, namely hot tea with lemon, raspberries, honey, lingonberry syrup or hot milk. Each remedy is aimed at liquefying sputum;
• humidify regularly.

As for drugs, doctors prescribe drugs that improve the expectorant effect and thin the sputum.

To cure a cough in a child at 1 year old, parents are allowed to massage on the chest and back. A similar effect on the lungs and bronchi improves sputum discharge. A coughing baby can also cough up on his own during active games. Such a process of therapy is considered much better than drinking medicines.

It is recommended to treat cough in a child older than 3 years with inhalations. Preference is given to inhalation through a nebulizer. This device sprays the therapeutic substance with which it is filled, and contributes to the delivery of the drug directly to the bronchi. However, before treating children, you need to seek the advice of a doctor, especially if the child is 2 years old. Otherwise, the cough to vomit in the child may continue for a long time.

When choosing medicines for a child, you need to be very thorough so that they do not harm the body. In medicine, there are drugs that can treat a cough in a child of 2 years. All these medicines will be based on plant extracts and active ingredients. Also, all medicines for children at this age are offered in the form of a syrup, which is convenient to take several times a day.

Cough without fever

People are used to the fact that if a person falls ill, then his body temperature necessarily rises, his condition worsens, cough, runny nose and other signs appear. However, doctors say that there are pathologies that manifest themselves with a slight increase in the mark or, in general, without an increase.

Cough without fever occurs with the same pathological processes as described above. However, the patient is not bothered by one of the many symptoms. Cough without fever is manifested in such pathologies:

• cold;
• allergy;
• stress;
• oncological disease;
• pathology of the heart;
• diseases of ENT organs;
• tuberculosis;
• thyroid disease.

Quite often, a cough without fever occurs in children who have just had SARS. This is due to the high level of vulnerability and sensitivity of the respiratory mucosa. What to do in this case? Doctors say that there is nothing pathological in this process. It is enough for the child to follow all the recommendations of doctors and continue the course of treatment. With such an ailment, it is undesirable for children to go to the team, but it is better to stay at home for two or three days in order to finally recover from the infection. Otherwise, the child may develop chronic inflammation or complications.

Cough during pregnancy

In women during pregnancy, the body becomes very vulnerable. Therefore, even short contact with sick people can contribute to the disease. Cough is only a symptom of a particular pathology, therefore, when such a symptom is found, you need to look for the root cause, and not try to get rid of an unpleasant symptom.

If a woman has a symptom due to an illness, then the question remains how to treat a cough during pregnancy so as not to harm the baby. Look for the answer in the doctor's office. To eliminate the sign of the patient, sparing syrups, tablets and vitamins are prescribed. In no case should a woman put jars and mustard plasters, take a hot bath and steam her legs to warm. You also need to be careful with the dose of vitamin C.

So how to treat a cough during pregnancy at home? For all the prohibitions that the doctor imposes on treatment, the woman is recommended simple physiotherapy procedures. At home, you can do inhalations with various herbs, gargle.

Doctors do not particularly recommend the use of alternative treatments, but several methods remain available and permitted. At the appointment, the doctor can tell you how to treat a cough with folk remedies and how often they can be used.

For the treatment of cough, it is advised to use:

• honey - rub on the chest, make compresses, eat a few teaspoons, add to tea;
• milk - use a little warm, you can add sage, figs;
• garlic and onions - chopped vegetables, take one spoonful three times a day.

Prevention

To prevent the occurrence of a recurrent cough, doctors advise what can be done for prevention:

• to eat healthy food;
• do not smoke and avoid breathing cigarette smoke;
• treat diseases in time;
• observe the rules of hygiene;
• in the cold season, do not overcool.

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Types of cough differ depending on its cause, localization of the pathological focus, the presence of sputum, time of day, duration ... It is a specific diagnostic sign for various diseases: SARS, bronchitis, pneumonia, lung cancer ... The treatment of each type of cough differs from each other.

Cough, as a reflex, occurs when individual sensitive areas of the respiratory tract with a large number of receptors are irritated. These zones are localized mainly on the back of the epiglottis, the anterior part of the larynx, around the vocal cords, at the level of the main and segmental sections of the bronchi, bifurcation (separation of the trachea into bronchi), on the pleura. The smaller the caliber of the bronchi, the fewer receptors. The periphery of the lungs is practically devoid of them.

ARI as the main reason

In the vast majority of cases, acute respiratory infections are the primary cause of damage to the epithelium of the respiratory tract. ARI includes ARVI, the infectious agent of which is exclusively a virus. For any ARVI, a respiratory syndrome is characteristic. It manifests itself as perspiration, sore throat, and cough from dry to productive.

The main culprits of SARS are influenza viruses, parainfluenza, adenovirus infection. Depending on the pathogen, the types of cough differ. So, with the flu, the tracheal area suffers more. Dry cough, sore throat and chest pain. Parainfluenza affects the larynx more, causing laryngitis. Therefore, the cough in this SARS is dry, barking, painful, with a sore throat, which is difficult to get rid of.

Rhinovirus infection is characterized by a wet cough.

Dry and wet

So, what is the cough depending on the presence of sputum? Productive and unproductive or dry and wet. This division, the most important from a clinical point of view, is the main one in the diagnosis of diseases.

Dry cough is its variety with the absence of any sputum. It often appears initially with a subsequent transition to wet.

An unproductive cough occurs from irritation of the mucous membrane during acute respiratory infections, when exposed to various foreign bodies. Cough is considered to be a protective mechanism, which is designed to get rid of germs, dust, and other foreign particles from the respiratory tract. However, it is not always protective in nature. When it enters the epithelium of the larynx, trachea, infectious agents multiply, irritate, and destroy the epithelium. However, there is no sputum, which is necessary to remove them from the body. It will appear only later, when the infection descends to the bronchi. Destroyed epitheliocytes can no longer impede the flow of air and delay the penetration of infection. There is further destruction of the protective epithelium. A sore throat due to damage and inflammation of the mucous membrane causes a dry, intense cough. This contributes to the fact that part of the newly formed viruses with a small amount of mucus spreads in the surrounding air, infecting other people.

Dry, agonizing, "barking"

It is ARI that is the cause of a greater number of laryngitis. Dry cough with a sharp, painful, can occur suddenly. The inflamed mucous membrane of the larynx and ligaments is red, swollen. This causes a constant feeling of tickling in the throat. The mucosa becomes especially sensitive to any particles, viruses, bacteria that fall on it, as well as to the effects of cold.

The lumen of the larynx itself decreases due to mucosal edema. This causes a sensation of sore throat. Inflammation, a decrease in the lumen and a large number of sensitive receptors make an unproductive cough with a constant tickle in the throat heavy and painful. The temperature is often subfebrile, 37 degrees.

In children, the mucosa is characterized by significant friability, thickness and blood supply. It swells more than in adults, reducing the lumen. May cause false croup, a life-threatening condition. Moreover, it can occur against the background of a slight malaise with a low, about 37 degrees, temperature.

Considering that the inflammatory process often also captures the vocal cords, hoarseness of the voice joins, up to its loss. This state continues for a long time. The timeliness of treatment is important. The use of sputum thinning agents does not give results.

Such an unproductive cough is called "dry barking cough" for its resemblance to a dog's barking. It is sharp, with a constant irritating sore throat, with small gaps in which there is barely enough time to draw in air.

In acute respiratory infections, the inflammatory process spreads through the epithelium of the respiratory tract from top to bottom. The defeat of the bronchi is characterized by the appearance of a dry cough, which turns into a wet one after a few days. If left untreated, it can cause pneumonia. Converting a dry cough into a wet one is the goal of treatment.

With inflammation of the pleura (pleurisy), it is extremely painful. Pain in this case with a characteristic localization in the chest area. It occurs or intensifies when moving, changing the position of the body, even with a full breath.

The leading symptom is an unproductive cough with whooping cough. ARI can provoke its appearance. It is strong, lasts a long time, with attacks that can lead to vomiting. With whooping cough, it may be the only symptom. The temperature rarely rises above 37. It is characterized by the absence of a positive effect from treatment with drugs that bring relief from any other etiology.

Its attack occurs with bronchial asthma and can quickly lead to respiratory failure.

Tuberculous dry cough has its own characteristics. If it appears once, with timely treatment, it does not go away for a long time and does not change for several weeks, then it is worth thinking about tuberculosis, the use of specific treatment.

Unproductive cough can be the cause of occupational diseases.

It is called productive because it removes pathological contents from the respiratory tract along with sputum.

There is also an unproductive cough, in which a small amount of sputum is produced, which is not enough to fulfill its cleansing function. This may be a chronic variant, when the mucosa is significantly damaged and not much mucus is produced.

Moist, Productive, Protective

Cough is considered productive, in which sputum discharge occurs. The type of sputum can suggest the nature of the disease.

With ARVI, bronchitis, a wet cough is the result of the formation of a secret on the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract. So the villous epithelium of the respiratory mucosa reacts to inflammation, the ingress of foreign particles, infectious agents onto it. After that, the airways are cleared, and the manifestations of SARS are on the decline.

Sputum can also appear as a result of sweating of the blood plasma of the vessels into the respiratory tract with pulmonary edema. It has a pink hue and a frothy texture. Such a cough with sputum without fever is the result of severe heart failure.

Purulent sputum appears in the presence of purulent foci (abscess, chronic bronchiectasis) in the lungs, after opening them into the lumen of the bronchi. A strong cough with purulent sputum and persisting for a long time indicates the presence of poorly drained infectious foci.

In asthma, the sputum is thick, glassy, ​​may look like casts of the bronchi, appears after the relief of an attack of dry asthmatic cough. The temperature can rise to 37 or not change at all.

Pneumonia in different stages is characterized by different sputum. It may be translucent white or rusty or streaked with blood.

Sputum with blood in a small amount can occur with intense coughing as a result of inflammation and tension of the mucosa. In lung cancer with decay phenomena, the appearance of sputum with blood is characteristic.

Even a strong cough with sputum categorically excludes the use of antitussives. It is necessary to thin the sputum and use any means that improve its discharge.

A productive cough is tolerated by patients much easier than a dry one. It is rarely accompanied by pain, not so long, expectoration of sputum brings relief.

A cough with sputum without fever or with high numbers is possible. The absence of temperature or its slight increase to 37 is typical for allergies, occupational contamination of the lungs, and chronic pathologies. A high temperature indicates the progression of the infectious process, which may be accompanied by the release of purulent sputum.

Morning and night

In the morning, coughing occurs as a result of the accumulation of sputum during the time spent in a horizontal position, after which there is a desire to cough it up. Moreover, in the morning it can be due to lung diseases and physiologically. The presence of ticks in the pillow and an allergic reaction to them will also cause coughing at night and in the morning.

Coughing in the morning may be the result of a runny nose and accumulation of mucus in the back of the throat. When a person takes a vertical position in the morning, then flowing down and irritating the receptors, sputum causes morning coughing.

Morning chronic cough is typical for smokers who have hypersecretion of bronchial mucus. Mostly morning, can accumulate overnight in large quantities.

Chronic cough is also characterized by increased in the morning.

coughing

This variety is found in long-term pathologies of the respiratory tract.

Such a chronic cough begins with a characteristic slight sore throat. It is quiet, weak, rare, does not lead to significant seizures. However, coughing may indicate that a chronic cough is forming with tuberculosis, pharyngitis, and circulatory disorders. Perhaps it is also like a residual cough after suffering pathologies. Often the cough is worse in the morning and lessened in the afternoon.

Residual cough

Residual cough is normal after acute respiratory infections. This type of cough also appears after untreated respiratory diseases. Most often, after bronchitis. It may also occur after laryngitis, as a result of a change in the mucous membrane and be caused by a feeling of slight soreness in the throat. In order for the residual cough to pass completely, the use of traditional medicine is recommended.