A little cough. What causes a cough and how to treat it properly? Environmental factors

At timely treatment it is quite possible to completely cure it in three to four days. Mild cough is initial stage cough, which in principle is not dangerous, if it is not started, treated in a timely manner and maintained in the body normal mode vital activity. Do you have a slight cough now? Prevention and precautions in the treatment of such a cough will be for you useful information in this article.

Easy cough: disease prevention

The necessary precautions must be observed in order to mild cough has not developed into a more dangerous and serious stage of coughing, which will be much more difficult to treat, which can give complications and knock you out of a normal life rut. In addition, stronger forms of cough give a person a lot of trouble.

Mild cough: precautions in the treatment of the disease

Necessary and mandatory precautions for mild cough:

Necessarily, every day with a slight cough, it is necessary to ventilate the room for about ten minutes, do wet cleaning of the room every other day, use a separate towel.

If the weather is good, then try to spend at least an hour in the sun, in the fresh air (in summer and late spring, in winter and in wet weather it is dangerous).

Eat well and properly, eat with a slight cough about three to four times a day, sleep more, drink warm liquids.

Take vitamins, eat more vegetables and fruits that contain vitamin C, lemons are good.

Dress warmly, avoid drafts.

Take every day for mild cough medications, be treated.

These are the basic rules for prevention and treatment that you need to follow if you have a mild cough, as well as more serious views cough. As a rule, a mild cough can only aggravate if left untreated and when the patient does not follow the above rules, then a mild cough can develop into more serious forms, which in turn can give dangerous complications for good health.

lung diagnostics cough

However, in order to know for sure that you have a mild cough, at the first of its symptoms, you need to contact a therapist in a hospital. Only he can deliver accurate and correct diagnosis and assign you an appropriate this disease a course of treatment. Otherwise, you can make a mistake in the diagnosis and self-medicate to start this disease. It is also important to know if you have allergies or not, as in this case, a slight cough may not actually be a cough, but an allergic reaction of your body to some pathogen. Therefore, one way or another, first of all, you need to go to the doctor, and only then begin to treat this catarrhal disease.

The cough is nonspecific defensive reaction organism. Its function is purification respiratory tract from sputum, dust or a foreign object. In the presence of a cough, a person, first of all, will think about diseases of the respiratory system. In fact, this symptom can also occur when other organs are affected.

Why do people cough?

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Cough receptors are located on the surface of the mucous membrane of the airways. Under the influence of a provoking factor, these cells are activated. Information received from receptors by ascending nerve fibers reaches the cough center located in medulla oblongata. This is where the information received is analyzed. Then, along the descending nerve fibers, a signal is sent to the intercostal, diaphragmatic, and abdominal muscles. Muscle contraction pushes foreign matter out of the airways.

Cough can occur against the background of a cold and disappear after a week. And sometimes coughing bothers a person for a long time and the cause of this symptom is not at all obvious. The duration of the cough is a very important characteristic. Depending on the duration, I classify three types of cough:

Spicy- duration up to three weeks;
Subacute- lasts four to eight weeks;
Chronic- lasts more than eight weeks.

Acute cough in most cases is caused by SARS. The symptom disappears after the person recovers. It is worth noting that children often have a post-infectious cough, which is practically not treatable. This syndrome may take place within one to two months. In such cases, doctors talk about subacute cough.
Prolonged coughing can be triggered not only by inflammatory diseases of the respiratory system, but also by cardiovascular insufficiency, neoplasms in the lungs and mediastinum. In addition, gastroesophageal disease, as well as nasal drip syndrome, can be causes of chronic cough.

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It is customary to divide the cough into unproductive and productive. Unproductive (dry) cough initial stage SARS. Gradually, the properties of sputum change and the patient notices that the cough becomes wet. So with the help of bronchial secretions, the body tries to force the virus out of the respiratory tract.
Productive cough characteristic of acute and chronic forms, bronchiectasis, bronchial asthma and congestive left ventricular failure.
To determine the cause of a cough, it is important to examine not only its duration and type, but also the nature of the sputum. Phlegm happens:

Serous (liquid, easily foaming);
Mucous (colorless or whitish, thick);
Purulent (yellow-green or Brown color, creamy consistency);
Mixed (combines the characteristics of mucous and purulent sputum);
Bloody (sputum mixed with blood).

Causes leading to cough

Determining the cause of the cough is very important. This will help formulate a diagnosis and prescribe effective treatment. Coughing is often a symptom dangerous disease, which is important to identify in a timely manner.

Infectious diseases of the respiratory system

Cough on the background of SARS occurs in just one or two days. Patients with this diagnosis have general weakness, fever, runny nose, headache. A viral infection can infect various departments respiratory tract. Characterized by perspiration and.

These symptoms make the person uncomfortable. Coughing, a person seems to be trying to get rid of the mucus accumulated in the throat. accompanied by painful, dry, barking cough. With inflammation of the larynx, the voice becomes hoarse. Children on the background of SARS may develop false croup. This is a condition characterized by stenosis of the larynx caused by swelling and spasm of its walls. Groats are characterized by:

Loud barking cough;
Hoarseness of voice;
Noisy, wheezing breathing (stridor);
Inspiratory dyspnea (occurs during inhalation);
Excitation and restlessness of a sick child.

false croup with the fourth degree of narrowing of the lumen of the larynx can lead to death due to asphyxia.

Note: true croup is observed when the larynx is affected. The disease develops gradually. Intoxication is mild, the temperature may rise slightly. With true croup, there is a loss of voice. During the examination, the presence of fibrinous whitish films covering the larynx, pharynx, tonsils is determined. Danger true croup in that the narrowing of the lumen of the larynx increases regardless of intensive therapy. Infants not vaccinated against diphtheria are at risk.
ARVI is also often manifested. Inflammation of the trachea is characterized by a loud, deep cough accompanied by chest pain. And for soreness in the chest is not typical. Cough with bronchial lesions is loud, chest. Sometimes even at a distance, without the use of a phonendoscope, wheezing is heard.

Cough treatment with folk remedies

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Exists a large number of folk recipes that can help in the fight against cough. Before using them, you should consult your doctor.

One of the most famous recipes is the radish remedy. For cooking, you need to take a black radish, wash it, cut off the top, and then cut out the pulp. Pour honey into the resulting bowl. Then the radish must be covered with a sheet of paper, on top of the cut off top of the root crop. Place the radish in a glass of water. After five hours, the contents can be poured into a glass. You should drink a tablespoon of liquid before meals.

How to treat a cough in a child with help? Pour milk into a saucepan, add three or four chopped figs, put on fire. You need to bring the milk to a boil. Then cover the broth with a lid and let it brew. When the liquid has cooled, it will be possible to take it. Milk should be drunk in a glass a day, always in a warm form.

Helps to cope with a cough decoction of calamus root. To prepare it, pour a tablespoon of herbs into two hundred milliliters of boiling water. Stir, turn off after ten minutes and cover with a lid. When the broth has cooled, strain it. A glass of decoction should be consumed before meals for about half an hour. It is necessary to drink five hundred milliliters of decoction per day.

Grigorova Valeria, medical commentator

Cough is a protective reflex that helps clear the airways of various foreign bodies. Acute cough accompanies most broncho- lung diseases and helps to cleanse the bronchi and lungs from mucus and phlegm.

Often, long-term inflammatory processes lead to a restructuring of the mucosa and cough from protective reflex becomes painful and chronic symptom which significantly impairs the quality of human life. Consider what processes can cause persistent cough in an adult and what can be done with him in each of the situations.

Consider the most common causes occurrence of this problem:

Chronic inflammatory diseases upper and lower respiratory tract (pharyngitis, laryngitis, tracheitis or bronchitis).
Allergy (permanent form).
Drip is a syndrome.
Bronchial asthma.
bronchiectasis.
Diseases digestive system(reflux, chronic gastritis with high acidity, etc.).
Severe diseases of the cardiovascular system.
Side effects of certain drugs.
cancer in this area.
System and specific diseases(lupus, sarcoidosis, tuberculosis, etc.)

In most cases, the cause of the problems can be identified, but 2% of patients can be diagnosed with "idiopathic cough", i.e. without a clearly stated reason.

There is a so-called psychogenic or psychosomatic cough. This means no organic disturbance, which causes a symptom, but the disturbance in the patient's psyche leads to a cough, which he complains to the doctor.

Consider separately the most common causes of cough and analyze how to diagnose and treat them.

Cough in inflammatory diseases of the respiratory tract

Chronic inflammatory diseases of all parts of the respiratory tract are almost always accompanied by constant coughing:

Cough in chronic pharyngitis is usually dry. Occurs in upper divisions throats. In addition, the patient feels a feeling of sore throat, tickling and scratching. Not accompanied by an increase in body temperature. Worries more at night and in dry weather.
Chronic laryngitis causes a persistent dry hacking cough. Symptoms of voice change join, there may be a discharge of viscous, difficult to separate sputum.
Tracheitis and bronchitis in chronic form accompanies dry permanent or occasional cough. The patient often complains of chest pain.

Using folk remedies, you need to be careful not to aggravate existing problem. It is not recommended to experiment with folk recipes in the treatment of chronic cough in children and adults prone to allergies.

To diagnose the cause of this symptom, the patient should be examined by an ENT and a therapist. X-ray helps to clarify the data of a visual examination, as well as a smear for flora and sensitivity.

Antibacterial and anti-inflammatory drugs are used for treatment. Among various groups antibiotics choose drugs with a wide range antimicrobial activity.

locally prescribed alkaline inhalation, sprays and absorbable lozenges. To eliminate the cough reflex caused by inflammation, you can use proven folk remedies: warm milk with honey and garlic, steam inhalations, radish juice, etc.

Cough caused by allergies

The techno-industrial development of the world leads to an increase in the number of patients with allergies and sensitization ( hypersensitivity) to airborne allergens. Main manifestation allergic reaction it is a persistent, dry, irritating cough.

Appear almost immediately after contact with the causative allergen. In addition to coughing, patients may complain of itching, watery eyes, and nasal discharge.

Prolonged allergization of the body is one of the risk factors for the development of bronchial asthma..

In the treatment of this problem, the key aspect is the elimination of contact with the causative allergen. To do this, you must first recognize it. To diagnose allergies, skin tests are used, as well as immunoblotting.

Immunoblotting method - a method for determining sensitivity to allergens using polymerase chain reaction. Allows you to test for several (10 or more) of the most common airborne and other allergens at once.

To eliminate the symptoms of allergies, the patient is prescribed antiallergic drugs different generations, such as:

erius,
Loratadine,
Zodak,
Suprastin and others.

In severe cases, local and systemic hormones are used (Prednisolone, Hydrocortisone).

Postnasal drip syndrome

AT recent times A theory has been actively developed that the cause of coughing, in the absence of inflammation in the lungs and bronchi, can be mucus that flows from the nasopharynx (Drip-syndrome).

Normally along the posterior wall of the pharynx healthy person a small amount of mucus always flows down, which moisturizes and protects the mucosa.

With problems with the nose (rhinosinusitis, deviated septum, chronic rhinitis), the amount of this mucus increases. It enters the respiratory tract and causes a cough protective reflex.

In his complaints to the doctor, the patient focuses on the constant flow of mucus along the back of the throat, and upon examination, the doctor can identify chronic sinusitis or disruption of normal anatomical structure nose. Helps in diagnosing x-rays paranasal sinuses nose or CT.

Used for treatment antibacterial drugs if the disease bacterial nature. Other patients are offered surgery with chronic rhinitis or a deviated septum. The third is selected antihistamine and local hormonal sprays, if the cause of the disease is an allergy.

A good effect is given by washing and irrigating the nose with saline solutions. They help to remove excess mucus, improve the functioning of the nasal mucosa and remove dust particles and allergens from the surface of the nasal mucosa.. You can buy these products at the pharmacy or prepare yourself at home.

Bronchial asthma and cough

Bronchial asthma is a severe systemic disease that can occur in various options. In addition to night attacks of suffocation, the patient is often worried about a dry cough with sputum difficult to separate. Such attacks of coughing, as well as suffocation, often disturb the patient at night, and also intensify after physical overexertion.

A feature of the diagnosis of bronchial asthma is that it is a diagnosis of exclusion..

Those. the patient is first checked for most of the most likely lung diseases and only then diagnosed with asthma. Help diagnosis specific methods studies such as spirography, peak flowmetry, etc.

Therapy depends on the form and stage of the disease, it is selected by a specialist depending on the severity of the symptoms. For treatment, inhaled and systemic hormones, cromones, bronchodilators, mucolytics and others are used. medicines.

Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract

A pathology such as gastroesophageal reflux (or GERD) can lead to the fact that the patient is tormented by a constant dry cough. The reason for this is the irritation of the mucous membrane of the larynx and pharynx with the acidic contents of the stomach.

In GERD, reflux occurs due to insufficiency of the esophageal sphincter. of hydrochloric acid on the mucous membrane of the throat. This acid leads to the development of mucosal atrophy and causes persistent chronic pharyngitis or laryngitis.

In addition to coughing, the patient complains of heartburn, belching, bad taste mouth and smell. Such a cough provokes overeating, a violation of the usual diet, and most often it occurs immediately after eating. For diagnosis, the patient is recommended to conduct fibrogastroduodenoscopy, as well as 24-hour pH-metry. These methods make it possible to diagnose GERD and establish its relationship with cough.

For treatment, it is recommended to adhere to a diet and rules healthy eating: 4-5 single meals, small portions, exclude fried, salty and spices, limit alcohol, muffins and sweets.

From medicines to cope with the disease help:

Antacids (Almagel).
Inhibitors proton pump(omeprazole).
Drugs that enhance intestinal motility (Cerukal).
Among the means alternative medicine widely used herbal preparations based on chamomile, marshmallow, calamus, plantain, etc.

Cough as a side effect of medication

Many patients suffering arterial hypertension and constantly taking drugs to normalize blood pressure, complain of a feeling of perspiration and coughing. This is a common side effect of taking blood pressure medications.

According to statistics, 70% of patients taking ACE inhibitors(enalapril, ramipril), manifested side effect in the form of constant dry cough and sore throat.

In some patients, this effect is observed on the first day of administration, while in others it can be registered after months and even years of drug use. How to cure chronic cough of this kind? Unfortunately not. Taking medication for pressure is much more important for the body than this side effect.

What can be done to reduce its irritating effect:

Try changing the drug. Some patients react to a particular drug and changing pills can help clear up the cough.
Stop smoking to reduce the irritating effect on the mucous membrane.
Take a regular course of physiotherapy and distracting symptomatic procedures (inhalations, gargling, moisturizing the mucosa with vitamin A or E oil).

Oncological pathology

One of the first signs of cancer of the larynx, trachea or bronchi can be this particular symptom. What you need to pay attention to:

A cough that lasts more than a month and is not related to a cold or an allergy. An alarming symptom to become the appearance of fresh or old blood.
Unexplained weight loss with a normal diet.
An increase in axillary, supraclavicular and other groups of lymph nodes.
Voice changes, unexplained hoarseness may indicate manifestations of laryngeal cancer.
Unmotivated fatigue, weakness and increased drowsiness.

Help in the diagnosis of this pathology visual inspection(for cancer of the larynx), bronchoscopy, and chest X-ray or CT scan. Final Diagnosis exhibited only on the basis of a pathomorphological study, for which a piece of altered tissue or a lymph node (biopsy) is taken from the patient.

In the view of many of us, a cough cannot be observed without and vice versa. Therefore, we do not consider these concepts as independent ones, which is completely wrong. Meanwhile, the causes of a cough without a cold in an adult can be very different, and a cold among them is far from in the first place. This is a symptom that occurs involuntarily, and it is caused by some kind of irritant of the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract. Anything can trigger a coughing fit. serious illness or foreign object in the throat.

What does a cough without a cold mean?

A cough without a cold is just as dangerous as a cold without a cough. In any case, such a phenomenon makes us wary, especially in a chronic form. And this process has its own explanation and causes of occurrence, on which the doctor relies when prescribing treatment. A healthy person coughs no more than 20 times a day, everything else is considered a sign of failure in the body.

For common cold and condition constructive treatment cough lasts a maximum of two weeks. At first it is dry, unbearable, then it becomes wet and easier to bear. The causes of a cough without a cold in an adult are respiratory diseases or lung disease. Similar symptom occurs when it enters the esophagus stomach acids. In this case, the attack occurs mainly at night, accompanied by heartburn and a sour taste in the mouth.

In experienced smokers, the lungs are affected, the esophagus is irritated. It is very difficult for the body to get rid of cough in such a situation. They are mainly concerned about a prolonged morning cough with sputum immediately after waking up. This is a classic condition for both passive and active smokers. The way to get rid of discomfort is obvious - you need to give up addiction.

Unproductive cough

Cause of dry cough without cold:

bronchospasm;
bronchial asthma;
allergy;
exposure to dust on the respiratory system;
ACE inhibitors used to lower blood pressure.

The factors that provoked a cough may be more serious, for example, lung cancer, heart failure, tuberculosis, pleurisy, mediastinal neoplasms.

In the presence of Koch's bacillus (the causative agent of tuberculosis) for a month. In this case, a fluorography and a thorough examination are prescribed.

Asthma and allergies

A dry cough without a cold is often the only symptom of asthma. The patient's condition worsens when inhaled strong odors, cold air, pollen or smoke. In addition to the common cold, it accompanies allergic rhinitis. With this disease, there is a rash, tearing, nasal congestion, sneezing, and often a headache.

The most dangerous allergens:

Food;
plant pollen;
animal hair;
book dust.

Distinguishing an allergy is quite simple. Attacks occur only at the moment of close proximity to the allergen. Getting rid of symptoms involves consulting a doctor and taking antihistamines.

Causes of a cough without a cold in an adult may be as follows: heart failure, which is accompanied by tingling in the chest, swelling of the extremities. A trip to the cardiologist in this case cannot be postponed. One of the symptoms of sinusitis or chronic rhinitis in addition to headaches and high temperature, is a lingering cough.

Diagnosis of causeless cough

The first doctor worth visiting will be a general practitioner, then he will refer you to another specialist. When making a diagnosis, the following points are taken into account:

when did the seizures start?
cough wet or dry;
additional changes in well-being.

Depending on the duration of the time period, coughing can be:

acute - up to 2 weeks;
protracted - up to 4 weeks;
subacute - up to 2 months;
chronic - more than 2 months in a row.

Often concomitant symptoms are ignored, for example, loss of appetite, drowsiness, weakness. Dry cough without a cold in an adult is easier to associate with lack of sleep or stress. As effective methods use hardware diagnostics (X-ray, CT, electrocardiography), laboratory tests blood/urine.

State nervous system can also cause this syndrome. At mental disorders cough medicines do not help, even blocking the reflex. Here you need to consult a neurologist or psychotherapist.

Cough without fever

An adult can constantly cough due to viral tracheitis. Attacks torment both day and night, in the throat it constantly hurts. Hot milk and medicines can alleviate the symptom, antibiotics, as a rule, do not help. But with such a dangerous bacterial complication like pneumonia, antibiotics are used.

Such a cough without signs of a cold can occur with whooping cough, the precursors of the onset of the disease are sore throat and weakness. Over time, the condition only gets worse, the person is simply covered with a wave, mainly at night. Treatment is carried out exclusively in a hospital and under the supervision of the attending physician. Otherwise serious consequences can't be avoided.

There is no temperature, but the cough is quite long, for sure only a blood test and a swab from the nasopharynx can refute or confirm the diagnosis.

Today, it is very difficult to find a person who would never cough during the day. The reason for everything ecological situation, weight various infections- living in a metropolis, one can only dream of clean air. When infectious agents enter the lungs or bronchi, the receptors of the respiratory tract are irritated and a cough occurs, which warns of mechanical obstacles and cleansing of the respiratory tract from sputum, mucus and other substances.

Other Causes of a Cough Without a Cold

During colds clinical picture understandable: the temperature rises, a runny nose, weakness and other symptoms of intoxication appear. In such a situation, the cause of dry cough is clear. Why does it occur without fever and signs of SARS? What are the causes of a cough without a cold in an adult?

In the absence of typical symptoms of a cold, a dry cough is indicative of latent inflammation or individual reactions hypersensitivity. Listed side effects some medicines have an unproductive chronic cough. These drugs include:

ACE inhibitors;
drugs for hypertension;
nitrofurans;
aspirin;
inhalation medicines.

Will have to reconsider drug therapy, if they lie in it The stomach reacts differently for everyone, so the treatment is selected individually.

Such discomfort may occur after an infectious or viral inflammatory process of the respiratory system. At the same time, a tickling or tickling in the throat is felt. The duration of such a cough can be up to 3 weeks.

Throat and lung cancer

In addition to the main symptom, there is difficulty breathing, discharge from the throat and nose. There is no temperature or low - 37-37.5 ° C. With lung cancer, the signs are typical, chest pains are also disturbing, sputum is excreted with pus or blood.

Important! Left unattended, prolonged dry cough in pregnant women poses a direct threat to the health of the fetus. Abdominal muscles future mother are constantly contracting and in good shape, which can lead to bleeding.

Accompanying symptoms

Even in the absence of signs of a cold, a cough rarely appears alone, as a rule, it is accompanied by the following symptoms:

hoarse voice;
shortness of breath even with slight exertion;
nausea, vomiting;
enlarged lymph nodes;
drowsiness, sweating.

Symptoms systemic diseases accompanied by cough:

rapid weight loss;
violation of the chair;
bad breath;
periodontitis.

When is medical assistance required?

Any acute or prolonged cough without a cold in an adult should be monitored by a doctor. At the following signs contacting a specialist should be immediate:

heat;
clouding of consciousness;
speech change;
cardiopalmus;
swelling of the limbs;
pain when swallowing and breathing.

Treatment and first aid

Pulmonologists do not recommend self-medication, especially when using folk remedies. home medicine can alleviate some symptoms, but eliminate them, much less cure the cause of the appearance, no. It is important to understand that all medicines for each type of cough are different. When dry, antitussives are prescribed, when wet - mucolytic, expectorant.

For Get well soon the patient needs to restore the regime of work and rest, quit smoking and adjust the diet. Apart from traditional drugs prescribe antiviral, antihistamines and antibiotics.

A cough without signs of a cold in an adult is taken by surprise, often it begins at night, you can alleviate the condition by taking the following measures:

When the source is tobacco smoke, you need to ventilate the room, drink warm tea or a glass of water.
At allergic cough you need to exclude any contact with the allergen: ventilate the room, on the contrary, close the window so that it does not fly pollen, gargle saline solution and wash their hands.
If attacks occur frequently, you should always have a mint with you.
Helps with sore throat plentiful drink warm water, hydrated, Fresh air in the room.

invisible enemies

Even the most healthy person can begin to suffer from a debilitating cough without symptoms of a cold and poison his life. We are talking about allergens that we encounter every day in our apartment. household dust, acting on the lungs, irritates them, so it is important to do wet cleaning at least 2 times a week. One of the strongest irritants is paper dust. All books and folders with papers should be kept under glass or in drawers.

Pets need to be brushed regularly to reduce the amount of hair in the air. Combustion products are dangerous, the kitchen must certainly have an exhaust hood. It is also important to be especially careful when handling household chemicals. Powders should be replaced with liquid agents, chlorine-containing agents should be excluded in general.

Indoor plants will help purify and humidify the air, so with regular coughing, it's time to plant greenery in the apartment.

The listed measures are preventive, consultation of a specialist doctor is required.

Coughing is a natural reaction of the body. It can be dry or wet. This depends on the treatment strategy. Cough never occurs without a reason.

Thanks to coughing, the human body is able to remove foreign elements from the respiratory tract that make it difficult to breathe and act on cough receptors.

Phlegm, dust and microorganisms exit the respiratory tract along with coughing shocks.

If a person coughs, it can be a symptom of absolutely any disease. For this reason, a large role is assigned to the correct and timely diagnosis. Coughing clears the bronchi, preventing the patient from suffocating. It can be said that cough plays vital important role in the body.

Medicine distinguishes several types of cough at once, depending on the symptoms and their causes. If the cough is sudden, most likely a foreign body has entered the respiratory tract.

But an acute and persistent cough will tell about infection of the respiratory tract. When a person suffers from a cough for more than 2-3 months, we are talking about chronic cough.

To find out at what level the impact of the infection occurred, the nature of the cough will help:

superficial (inflammation rear wall pharynx, pharyngitis disease);
rough, irritating (there was damage to the vocal cords or trachea, laryngitis, pharyngitis developed).

It is very important to start treatment at this moment. Otherwise, a complication may begin, for example, bronchitis, pneumonia.

These diseases are dangerous and require antibiotic treatment.

There are many reasons for coughing. So, this symptom can be viral, bacterial or allergic origin. In addition, diseases arise due to dusty air, its unsatisfactory condition.

If the cough is dry, it is the result of irritation cough receptors. These receptors are located in various parts human body:

trachea;
pharynx;
the place of division of the bronchi;
paranasal sinuses;
stomach.

The urge to cough and the cough itself begins immediately after exposure to any of these receptors.

It is different with wet cough. It is characterized by sputum production due to the development of an inflammatory process in respiratory system. With such a cough, the body tries to expel the sputum accumulated in it. It should be noted that if the secret is not removed from the bronchi, with a large accumulation of it, there will be a violation of the natural ventilation of the lungs, their inflammation.

Sometimes the patient complains of coughing for no reason. By this it is necessary to understand the absence of an obvious cause of coughing. Most likely in such situations we are talking about the manifestation of an allergic reaction to something, coughing on nervous ground. When such a cough persists for more than 7 days, it does not hurt to consult a therapist and undergo an examination of the body.

It is important to mention the so-called nocturnal cough. It develops only at this time of day or simply greatly intensifies at night. Reason - horizontal position body. Mucus accumulates in the nasopharynx, it is difficult for it to dissolve. Therefore, the discharge clogs the nasopharynx and provokes a reflex cough.

According to this principle, the process unfolds in the lungs:

sputum dissolves extremely slowly;
impairs blood supply to the lungs;
cough develops.

However, nocturnal coughing fits may be associated with changes in the microclimate at night.

At night, the air becomes drier and cooler. It irritates the mucous membranes of the larynx, causing a reflex spasm in the bronchi.

There are two types of cough. It can be dry or wet. A typical feature the onset of a cold will be a dry cough.

The symptom is characterized by the absence of sputum. The peculiarity of such a cough is that the patient constantly wants to clear his throat, as if getting rid of something foreign in the chest.

Dry cough is very difficult to stop. The patient has to cough again and again. At this point, there is a violation of the integrity of small blood vessels around the vocal cords. As a result:

hoarseness develops;
the patient loses his voice.

At the beginning of the disease, it is important to try to make the expectoration wet. For this, the doctor recommends taking special expectorant, mucolytic drugs.

If the disease recedes, wet cough ends and may turn into a protracted dry. Medicines that suppress the cough reflex will help cure it.

Prolonged coughing provokes jumps in blood pressure levels. Insomnia and even cardiopulmonary insufficiency are not ruled out.

Wet cough is the result of accumulation of sputum in:

lungs;
bronchi;
trachea.

Often it becomes a continuation of a dry cough. Then it is called productive. With its help, the body is cleared of sputum, in which pathogenic microorganisms can develop.

Prolonged wet cough becomes chronic. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to thin the sputum with mucolytics. This will allow:

make the secret less viscous;
facilitate its removal from the body.

Additionally, it is helpful to drink as much liquid as possible.

Thus, dry cough occurs with inflammation of the mucous membrane, wet - from the accumulation of sputum. In the first case, treatment is carried out with sedatives, in the second .

You should be alert when expectorated sputum contains blood streaks. it serious reason apply as soon as possible medical care. Blood indicates damage to the bronchial structures and mucous membranes.

It is possible that hemoptysis becomes the first wake-up call of dangerous diseases:

tuberculosis;
lung tumor.

Duration of cough

Coughing that occurs when colds usually goes away within a week. When to pathological process connected vocal cords, the symptom lasts at least 14 days.

According to the duration of the cough is divided into:

spicy;
protracted;
chronic.

Acute lasts up to 3 weeks. He is persistent. That is, in an acute process, the patient coughs constantly. There is a cleansing of the bronchi from sputum. Usually acute cough accompanies diseases of the respiratory group, pharyngitis, pneumonia.

When a person does not stop coughing for 3 weeks, talk about persistent cough. It can last up to 3 months. If, with an acute cough, the patient is forced to cough constantly, with a prolonged cough, undulating bursts of spasms occur. There may be several attacks during the day, a cough appears and disappears after a while. Moreover, the symptom may occur in certain time– only day or night. It indicates the transition to the chronicle.

Chronic cough may be the result of not fully cured primary disease, its complication. It can also be a signal of the presence of dangerous diseases in the human body:

tuberculosis;
neoplasms;
heart failure;
chronic bronchitis.

Basically, this type of cough is intermittent. There are both exacerbations and remissions, when the patient does not feel discomfort.

What is an allergic cough? It is not considered a disease. Such a cough is usually accompanied by pain in the throat, runny nose, and an insignificant increase in body temperature.

Allergic cough is a harbinger or symptom of bronchial asthma. The cause of the cough in this case is exposure to allergens.

This type of cough may be associated with inflammatory process in:

trachea;
bronchi;
throat.

When combined allergic rhinitis, coughing may start serious violation breathing. The first thing to do in such a situation is to get rid of the pathogen as soon as possible. inadequate response organism.

Allergic cough paroxysmal. It starts suddenly and can last for a long time. Approximately 2-3 weeks the patient suffers from constant coughing and runny nose. The person coughs more often at night.

Usually the cough is dry, but sometimes it can be productive. The secretions are then transparent, not having any impurities.

What to do when coughing?

They begin to fight cough with the establishment of its cause. Treatment in this case occurs as a concomitant of the main therapy. Based on the cause, the nature of the cough, the doctor prescribes medications.

The wrong tactic is to “mask” a cough without getting rid of its root cause. In this case, it will gradually become chronic form. cough has unpleasant property become more complicated.

Modern pharmacology offers a lot of medicines that stop coughing. If it is dry, you will need to use drugs that promote the transition of cough to wet. It is also required to take funds to soothe a sore throat.

mucolytics (to thin sputum);
expectorant (increase cough shocks for a quick release of sputum);
soothing (reduce the activity of dry cough).

It is very difficult for a simple layman to do right choice medicines. Therefore, self-medication is not worth it.

Causes of cough can be eliminated with medicines and syrups. They are usually made from herbal ingredients: anise oil licorice root, marshmallow. Such plants stimulate the motor function of the respiratory tract.

Potions and syrups are often pleasant-tasting, sweet. But you should drink them only after eating. If taken on an empty stomach, vomiting may occur.

Supplement the treatment of cough with gargles. It is best to do this at the very beginning of the disease, when the sore throat is just beginning. It is shown to carry out the procedure using saline solutions with Chlorophyllipt.

For each glass of warm boiled water, take a tablespoon of kitchen or sea salt and the same amount of Chlorophyllipt.

What else can be done

To complex treatment respiratory diseases that are accompanied by a dry or wet cough, stimulants are often prescribed immune system. Such drugs are called immunostimulants, they:

increase protective force organism;
help to reduce the frequency and severity of the disease.

With bronchitis, tracheitis, acute respiratory viral infection, coughing is treated with rubbing. It won't be too hard to make them.

Eucalyptus balm or warming ointments are first rubbed on the back, and then chest sick person. This can be done with the help of a mitten worn on the right hand.

Rubbing is carried out gently and smoothly. Within a minute, you can not do more than 60 movements. Also, you can not rub in one place for a long time to prevent irritation and trauma to the skin. In general, it can be quite effective.

Sometimes you can not do without the use of antibiotics. By themselves, they are not able to treat cough. Antimicrobials contribute to getting rid of the root cause of this symptom.

Do not self-prescribe antibiotics. Medicines are necessary for the treatment of diseases accompanied by a cough, and to relieve other symptoms:

inflammation of the lungs;
bronchitis;
respiratory ailments caused by bacteria.

Doctors use those drugs that have proven themselves in the treatment certain disease. But on the condition that the tests carried out confirmed sensitivity to specific substances.

For example, with pneumonia accompanied by shortness of breath, bouts of dry cough and difficulty breathing through the nose, you will need to use antibiotics. penicillin series, cephalosporins.

When pneumonia is started, it is indicated to treat with sulfonamides, aminoglycosides. The course of therapy will be at least 7 days. As soon as the patient gets better, the cough will also go away. For some time, the so-called residual cough. However, this is considered the absolute norm.

In conclusion, it should be said that a healthy person should not have a cough! Sometimes it occurs in response to a foreign object that has entered the bronchi:

dust;
a crumb of food;
water;
chemical substances.

Cough will stop immediately after disappearance annoying factor. In all other cases, we are talking about a disease of the respiratory tract, a violation of cardiac activity, an allergic reaction of the body and a violation of the functioning of the patient's central nervous system.

Elena Malysheva will tell you how to treat cough in the video in this article.