Why does dry cough not go away? Causes of dry cough in children and adults. What is behind the rare dry cough

From a physiological point of view, cough is a protective reaction of the body to the occurrence of any irritants in the respiratory tract. The reasons for this phenomenon can be completely different: from infections and inflammatory processes in the airways until a foreign object enters the lungs or bronchi. In addition, bouts of barking or wet cough may cause strong allergens or toxins.

Most often, a cough appears as a symptom that accompanies a cold. In this case, you should immediately consult a doctor who will prescribe a comprehensive treatment for the disease. However, it also happens that rare cough appears for no apparent reason and gives a person a lot of inconvenience. Such a symptom is also a reason to visit the doctor, since a dry cough in a child or adult can be a symptom of a serious illness.

Causes

Very often, rare coughs are observed after treatment. colds or the flu. This is due to the fact that not all sputum was removed from the respiratory organs, which gradually comes out on its own. But there are other reasons that can cause a rare dry or even wet cough:

• Too dry (or vice versa - humid) air in the room.
• If you have other symptoms such as fever body, irritated throat, runny nose or general malaise, you should consult a doctor, because in this case, rare coughing may indicate the presence of an infectious or viral disease in mild form.
• An infrequent cough may persist as a residual effect after treatment for serious illnesses such as bronchitis or pneumonia. Doctors consider this phenomenon normal, because with rare coughing, mucus residues are removed from the lungs, and in this case, take any medications no need. Often, this type of cough is observed in the morning, and in children it can last up to two weeks.
• Attacks of a rare dry cough also appear if there is a lot of fungus and mold in the room where the person is constantly located. Need to take a closer look at your home workplace and immediately remove germs from walls, ceilings, or furniture to stop coughing fits.
• The child has dry or even barking cough, which appears only from time to time, may indicate that toxins and allergens have appeared in the environment of the baby. Very often, this phenomenon is observed if the parents of the child smoke and penetrate into the room cigarette smoke.

Methods for the treatment of rare cough

Even lung attacks cough does not bother the patient too much, it is still worth consulting a doctor, since such a phenomenon may indicate serious violations in the work of the body. So, it is necessary to be examined for tuberculosis, especially if a person has a barking, but rare cough. In a child, this process can occur even on nervous ground or after stress.

Only a qualified physician can determine real reason rare cough in a child or adult and prescribe the correct treatment. Self-medication is not worth it, since there can be a huge number of reasons for the occurrence of such a cough, and all of them require a separate medical treatment.

1. In no case should you start taking drugs that suppress cough reflex. Otherwise, sputum will continue to accumulate in the airways and the initial stage of the disease that caused the cough may develop into chronic form.
2. Often, expectorants (mucolics) are used to treat a barking or wet cough in a child. They speed up the process of removing mucus residues from the bronchi and speed up the healing process. You can use not only syrups and other medicines that are sold in a pharmacy, but also use folk expectorants prepared on the basis of medicinal plants (for example, nursing fees).
3. To gradually minimize and then completely eliminate attacks of a rare wet or dry cough, you need to drink as much warm liquid as possible. Good means are honey, raspberry and currant jam, as well as propolis.

Ignoring even very rare bouts of wet cough is not worth it, especially if this process is not accompanied by symptoms of a common cold. In smokers, a rare barking cough appears several years after the start of smoking, and in order to get rid of it, you simply need to quit the bad habit. However, non-smokers, occasional coughing should cause some alarm. AT this case it is better to consult a doctor and first of all undergo a fluorographic examination in order to exclude serious illness lungs (bronchitis and tuberculosis), the development of which may not be accompanied by other symptoms, except for cough.

You are a fairly active person who cares and thinks about your respiratory system and health in general, continue to play sports, healthy lifestyle life and your body will delight you throughout your life. But do not forget to undergo examinations on time, maintain your immunity, this is very important, do not overcool, avoid severe physical and severe emotional overload. Try to minimize contact with sick people, in case of forced contact, do not forget about protective equipment (mask, washing hands and face, cleaning the respiratory tract).

A rare cough in itself is not a disease. It's just defensive reaction body to internal problems or external stimuli. Therefore, whether it is rare attacks of a harmless nature or serious attacks, you first need to identify the cause in order to further deal with its elimination.

And the reasons for its occurrence can be very different - from the ingress of a foreign body into the respiratory tract, to various diseases internal organs.

Causes of a rare dry cough

Don't worry ahead of time. Serious diseases like whooping cough and influenza are accompanied by severe and painful cough. With bronchitis, it will be barking, a metallic echo will be felt in it. And when bronchial asthma coughing occurs with the release of sputum, viscous and thick.

The reasons why a rare cough occurs can be divided into two main groups - chemical and mechanical. The first group includes changes that occur in the tissues of the lungs and other respiratory organs under the influence of complex biochemical processes (for example, with fibrosis). Mechanical causes is the influence external influences or ingestion of a foreign body.

If speak about chemical causes, then a rare cough may be caused by complications after infectious diseases respiratory tract. It is usually accompanied additional symptoms, namely, a runny nose, temperature, etc.

Sometimes coughing is caused by heart failure. In this case, it appears only at night (or, according to at least, intensifies at this time of day).

Mechanical causes of rare cough

There are many reasons associated with mechanical irritation of the mucous membranes and the occurrence of cough as a response.

too dry air in the room;

increased airway compression lymph nodes thyroid gland;

too humid air in the room, due to which fungus and mold can develop, and getting into the respiratory tract, they cause coughing;

accidental inhalation foreign bodies- for example, particles chemical substances in production;

drying of the mucous membranes in diseases endocrine system and diabetes. This is a common problem with hypothyroidism, and the condition is often accompanied by a change in voice as the condition of the ligaments and blood circulation deteriorate.

Nocturnal cough can be caused wrong position body during sleep. In addition, it is a sign of GERD (in other words, reflux disease).

Sometimes the reason lies in the presence cervical hernia. It is completely impossible to cure this disease, but you can alleviate the condition by choosing the right pillow and mattress.

But how to distinguish one type of cough from another? The doctor will diagnose - he can force you to pass general analysis blood and urine, make an ultrasound or x-ray of internal organs. This will answer all questions.

But in order to understand which specialist - a neurologist, laryngologist or endocrinologist to go to, all this can be checked even at home. If, after changing the position of the body, the cough remains, then this indicates that it is caused by just such a disease, and more time should be devoted to its treatment - adjust the diet, provide sports mode and acceptable levels of stress.

How to get rid of a rare dry cough?

Only a doctor can prescribe treatment for such a symptom as a rare, but rather annoying dry cough. But there are a few things you can do before you visit the doctor.

There are things that should never be done - for example, suppress the cough reflex.

If you drink pills with him, then the cough itself may become less pronounced, but the reasons for its appearance will not go anywhere. Moreover, sputum will begin to accumulate in the respiratory tract, which during this time will not find a natural outlet. And, if the cough was caused by a respiratory disease, then it can turn into a chronic form, which will be very difficult to cure.

With a dry cough, it is not advisable to take expectorant drugs, since in this case mucolytic agents do not help to remove sputum. First you need to achieve a thinning of the mucus, and only then you can worry about its removal.

To soften a rare cough, to make it wet, you need to drink as much warm liquid as possible. Tea and coffee are not suitable for this, but you can brew rose hips, drink warm water with honey (linden or acacia).

Traditional medicine in such cases also recommends currant or raspberry jam, as well as rose petal jam, which is characterized by a strong anti-inflammatory effect. The air in the room should be fresh and sufficiently humidified.

Treatment largely depends on what disease caused the disease. For example, if this is due to an increase thyroid gland, then only an endocrinologist can prescribe treatment, his goal will be to normalize the function of this organ.

It is possible to alleviate the cough reflex by normalizing the process of swallowing saliva. This is the basis of the action of many cough drops. They cannot fight strong and prolonged attacks. For this there are combined preparations like the relatively harmless Stoptussin or drugs with narcotic effect like codeine.

If the disease was caused bacterial nature then treated with antibiotics. For each type of bacteria there is a preparation. For example, in the treatment streptococcal infection are drugs from the group of cephalosporins or penicillin.

In addition, the doctor will most likely insist on an antibiogram to determine which drug the bacteria are resistant to and which drug may work.

There are various folk methods treatment of rare cough. But not all of them are effective. For example, inhalations based on honey, salt, steam from medicinal herbs like marshmallow are considered effective. But only if the cough is residual effect after infectious diseases.

In addition to treatment, prevention of these pathologies is important. Need to give up bad habits such as alcohol and cigarettes. You will also have to reconsider the mode of work and rest.

If necessary, go through additional research- say, to make a cardiogram to rule out cardiovascular diseases. Scientists believe that sometimes the cause of coughing in adults can be a nervous shock or stress, then coughing is a kind nervous tick Therefore, it is very important to maintain a positive emotional state.

At first glance, this symptom should not disturb, since the cough does not last long, and the attacks rarely recur. But if you take bronchospasms lightly, you can skip the onset of the disease or let the untreated disease resume. What does a rare dry cough really mean?

Suggested causes of bronchospasm

If a rare cough continues to bother after treating a cold, this means that sputum has remained in the airways, and it gradually comes out. This phenomenon is considered normal, because during coughing, the remaining mucus is removed from the lungs. So take strong drugs, especially those designed to suppress the cough reflex, is not necessary, otherwise sputum will accumulate, make breathing difficult, and as a result, you will have to fight a new disease. Most often, this type of cough is observed in the morning, in children, such residual effects can persist for up to two weeks.

However, the appearance of a rare dry cough is also due to other factors. Bronchospasm is caused by the following reasons:

• a mild form of an infectious or viral disease, as evidenced by fever, throat irritation, runny nose, slight malaise;
• chronic form of the disease;
• the presence of fungus or mold in the room where a person spends a lot of time (if the walls, ceiling and furniture are cleaned of harmful microorganisms, the disturbing symptom disappears);
• exposure to toxins and allergens that are in the air, and provoke the baby rare cases cough can even cigarette smoke emitted by smoking parents;
• too dry or humid air.

A rare cough sometimes becomes a tool to attract attention. It is typical for patients with hysteria, disorders nervous system. In people with an unstable psyche, every time there is excitement, irritation of the cough center occurs, which leads to coughing. So a person subconsciously tries to draw attention to himself and even arouse pity.

In addition, a psychoneurological cough may be the result of mental trauma, he appears in an unusual and restless environment or with excitement, as well as during a dispute.

With neuropsychiatric cough, there is also a rapid heartbeat, severe shortness of breath, skin redness. There is a feeling of pain in the heart, a feeling of fear. The attack is accompanied by intense sweating.

How to help the body cope with the problem

First of all, the cause of bronchospasm should be eliminated. So, if during the examination a cough of a psychoneurological nature is diagnosed, then one must prepare for long-term treatment. The situation is complicated by the fact that a lot of research remains to be done to confirm or exclude diseases of the respiratory and of cardio-vascular system. In particular, in people with such symptoms, bronchial asthma is often assumed, treatment is prescribed, but the patient's condition does not improve.

The best method, according to many doctors, is to change the microclimate in the family or in a children's, educational institution.

When coughing of a psychoneurological nature in children, it should be borne in mind that medical preparations, in particular from the group of neuroleptics, can cause unwanted side effects. Their strong calming effect can be accompanied by drowsiness, impaired concentration, and even be replaced by anxiety, anxiety and fear.

If bronchospasm is caused by a cold or SARS, mucolytics should be used - drugs that help to remove sputum. The following drugs are considered the most popular:

• "Lazolvan" in the form of lozenges, lozenges, solution, syrup;
• "Medox" in the form of syrup and tablets;
• "Ambrobene" in capsules, tablets, injection or syrup;
• "Flavamed" in the form of a solution or tablets;
• "Bronchoval" in tablets or syrup.

This list can be supplemented with the drug "Sinupret" plant origin. The medicine is made on the basis of gentian root, primrose and elderberry flowers, sorrel herb and verbena. This composition helps to free the upper respiratory tract from sputum. However, this drug should not be taken by children who are under 6 years of age, as well as by anyone who is allergic to the components of Sinupret.

Medicines from the group of mucolytics make sputum more liquid, contribute to its excretion. But you should take any of the proposed remedies only after consulting a doctor. It should also be borne in mind that some of these drugs have contraindications that pose an additional threat to health in case of allergies.

Important! Mucolytics and expectorants should not be combined with antitussives.

What does the national pharmacy offer

You can eliminate a rare cough with the help of prescription products alternative medicine. So, you can use the infusion based on the following components:

• marshmallow root (40 g);
• licorice root naked (25 g);
• coltsfoot leaves (20 g);
• 15 g of fennel fruit.

We mix the components, take 50 g of ready-made raw materials, place in a thermos, pour 250 ml of boiling water and insist for half a day, then filter. Drink this infusion should be a quarter (for patients with a large weight - a third) of a glass up to 5 times during the day. It is noteworthy that doctors often recommend this recipe as one of the most effective.

A drink prepared on the basis of marshmallow root (4 teaspoons) helps to quickly remove the remnants of sputum. Raw materials are poured cold boiled water(0.5 l) and infused for 8 hours. After that, the infusion should be filtered, drink warm, 0.5 cups up to 4 times a day.

In order not to harm health with herbal remedies, all their properties should be taken into account. If a person has a tendency to allergies, then after taking such a medicine, the cough may increase. In addition, preparations based on oregano are contraindicated in pregnant women.

A warm drink contributes to the rapid elimination of cough, in addition it is good to use honey, raspberry and currant jam, propolis.

For complex treatment It is recommended to review the diet. Great favor the body will receive from figs, dates, butter(preferably homemade), pumpkin, boiled beans with almond and pumpkin seed oil. Useful barley water, stew made from barley and beans. It is recommended to include liquid milk porridge from hercules in the menu, mashed potatoes with addition a large number milk.

It is necessary to give up sharp and spicy dishes, sweet (especially carbonated) drinks, as well as sweets. This ban is due to certain products can interfere with the excretion of sputum and may exacerbate or provoke coughing.

A specialist will help you choose a therapy that will completely get rid of a cough. Medical recommendations will be based on the condition and characteristics of your body.

Many parents in a child are not perceived as a serious illness. Especially if the temperature does not rise. In most cases, coughing is treated at home, without resorting to the help of doctors. But coughing does not occur for no reason. This is a reflex reaction of the body to airway congestion, sputum formation, or other annoying factors. Therefore, it is impossible to start treatment without finding out real reasons coughing in a child.

All young children are characterized by rare coughing, especially in the morning, after waking up. It is normal to cough up to 10 times a day. All people, regardless of age, form in the airways a small amount of. But in babies, it is thicker and more viscous, and therefore it is much more difficult to get rid of it. With this, the appearance of rare bouts of coughing is associated.

But if the child's coughing is more frequent and repeated throughout the day, then most likely it is a symptom of some kind of disease.

Most often it is bronchitis or another infection. respiratory system(ARI, pneumonia and others).At the same time, significant amounts of mucus are constantly formed in the bronchi of the child. And the fact that children under 3 years old still do not know how to cough properly and do not do it on time exacerbates the situation. The discharge of sputum is difficult, and is delayed for a long time.

Other causes of prolonged coughing can be diseases such as:

• allergic rhinitis
• chronic
• inflammation

During them, viscous mucus is formed in the sinuses, which, flowing down, has irritant effect on cough receptors, provoking.

A more serious disease, one of the symptoms of which is coughing, is whooping cough.

At the same time, the attacks are very painful, repeat up to 50 times a day and do not go away for 1-2 months. In particular severe cases possible signs of suffocation.

Video. Causes of cough in a child.

In addition, the causes of coughing in children may be:

• development of bronchial asthma
• obstructive bronchitis
• heart or lung disease
• physical exercise
• change in ambient temperature
• foreign body in the airways
• stress

The protracted nature of coughing in children is most often observed in the chronic form of one of the diseases. Acute period illness usually lasts no more than 3 weeks. Accordingly, the cough passes for a similar period.

Without the appropriate or if it was incorrect, the disease can flow into a chronic form. In this case, the child coughs for more than 4 weeks and this is repeated from 3 times during the year.

Most often the fault prolonged cough in childhood is a respiratory infection.

But there are other causes that must be ruled out before treatment is prescribed:

Prolonged coughing requires a serious attitude and a thorough examination of the patient. Due to the fact that it is usually a symptom of a chronic condition, it can be problematic to identify the cause. To do this, a detailed history is collected, the circumstances under which seizures occur are clarified, and an x-ray is taken.

Often, the diagnosis in such a situation is possible only by successive exclusion of the most probable causes. Sometimes a trial treatment is carried out even in the absence of direct evidence of a particular disease.

Sore throat and dry cough

The reasons are also many. With such a cough, sputum is not secreted and discharged, its second name is unproductive.

It is typical for initial stage many respiratory diseases and viral infections, such as:

• tracheitis

A few days after the child becomes ill, sputum production usually begins.

A severe, agonizing dry cough may be a symptom of one of the bacterial infections: whooping cough, diphtheria or tuberculosis. With whooping cough, it is paroxysmal, debilitating, at the end of the attack a whistling sound is heard. With diphtheria, it is rough, and with tuberculosis it can have absolutely any character.

Various allergens are capable of provoking attacks of dry coughing: dust, pollen, feather pillows, pet hair, and so on. At allergic reaction concomitant symptoms are lacrimation and runny nose.Cause dry baby cough may be insufficient humidity in the room or excessive dust. As well as various chemical irritants: detergents and cleaners, paints, perfumes, tobacco smoke.

Gastroesophageal reflux can also cause tickling.

This is a phenomenon in which food from the stomach, along with gastric juice enters the esophagus, exerting an irritating effect on it. In this case, the child may complain of abdominal pain and heartburn. Most often this happens when the baby takes a horizontal position.

A sudden dry cough may indicate that food or a foreign object has entered the respiratory tract.

Coughing at night

The appearance of coughing in a child at night is easily explained. When he is in lying position, the resulting mucus flows freely through the nasopharynx to the respiratory tract. There, it interferes with normal air circulation, it becomes difficult for the baby to breathe, as a result of which the cough reflex is triggered.

The causes at night can be the same as in other cases. These are diseases of a cold or viral nature. As a rule, in the first stages, the symptoms of such diseases appear mainly at night.

Bronchial asthma on early stages can also manifest itself in this way. Coughing in a child at night is a residual effect of bronchitis.A nighttime cough can be a symptom of an allergic reaction. Its exacerbation during sleep is due to the fact that the allergen is in the baby's crib or next to it.

It could be:

• washing powder with a pungent odor, which was washed baby clothes
• poor quality bedding, pajamas
• allergenic materials inside the pillow, blanket, mattress
• toys made of synthetic, rubber or plastic
• items that have been recently painted

In addition to a night cough, an allergic reaction is evidenced by such concomitant signs, as the appearance, slight swelling, sweating and tearing in a child.

To identify the allergen, it is necessary to remove suspicious things and objects from the children's room one by one, try to replace the bedding, change the washing powder to hypoallergenic. Once the child has been shielded from the cause of the allergy, nighttime coughing will stop.

Cough without fever

Most viral or respiratory diseases, as a rule, are accompanied not only, but also sharp rise. But it happens that the child begins to cough for no apparent reason, besides, his body temperature is within normal limits. In any case, a cough does not occur for no reason, and if it has already appeared, then this should alert the baby's parents.

The first thing that can lead to such a cough is foreign object in the respiratory tract. It urgently needs to be removed independently or called ambulance otherwise the child will start to choke.

Improper treatment of bronchitis, tracheitis, and some other diseases leads to their transition to a chronic form. It is characterized by a sluggish flow inflammatory process in the bronchi and lungs, as well as cough without fever. Tuberculosis is another reason.

With bronchial asthma, coughing is not always accompanied by fever.

At the same time, with him, the child has asthma attacks. Paroxysmal cough without any other symptoms may be a sign of inflammation. Coughing at normal temperature perhaps as a manifestation of a reaction to some kind of allergen or irritant, as well as dry air.

Coughing in an infant

This phenomenon in baby, as in older children, in 9 out of 10 cases it is a symptom of an acute respiratory or viral infection.

But if the baby coughs no more than 20 times during the day, then for sure it is of a physiological nature. That is, it does not indicate the development of a certain disease, but is necessary for the baby in order to clear the airways of accumulated mucus. In this case, it is not necessary to treat the baby.

Insufficiently humid and overheated air in the children's room leads to drying of the mucous membranes and perspiration in the baby. A slight cough is possible during teething.

But in addition to relatively harmless coughing in an infant, more serious reasons can also be caused.

Sometimes it is concomitant symptom enough serious illnesses requiring immediate treatment.Therefore, if such a phenomenon is detected in a baby, you must definitely contact a pediatrician or call an ambulance. Only experienced specialist will be able to objectively assess the condition of the child and prescribe appropriate therapy.

Treatment

Treatment methods for children's cough directly depend on the causes of this phenomenon.

• If coughing is caused by dry, overheated air, then you need to regularly ventilate the room. A humidifier will help prevent excessive drying of the air.
• Cough allergic nature treated by identifying the allergen and eliminating it.
• Coughing as a symptom of a cold or viral disease, requires complex treatment. With a dry child, drugs that suppress the cough reflex (Bronchicum, Codelac and others) are shown. At productive cough- expectorant, mucolytic (, and others). The action of the former is aimed at stopping the debilitating, often recurring cough. The latter reduce the viscosity of sputum, contribute to its better discharge. Works well for coughs various ointments and rubbing, such as Vicks Active in combination with massage.
• Promotes liquefaction and expectoration of sputum plentiful drink. The child can be given all kinds of fruit drinks, compotes, milk with honey, blackcurrant tea, decoctions of medicinal plants: plantain, chamomile, linden.
• With more serious illnesses treatment must be prescribed by a doctor.

Coughing in a child is not independent h. Therefore, before doing anything, you must certainly find out the reason. To do this, contact your local pediatrician. After all, trying to get rid of coughing on your own can only aggravate the situation.