Dry cough with pharyngitis in children and adults: treatment, symptoms, causes

Features of cough with pharyngitis

The cough that accompanies [pharyngitis] can be dry, throaty, hacking, worse at night and early in the morning and accompanied by unpleasant painful sensations in the throat.

Often, patients complain of restless nights, during which they have repeated coughing attacks, while the patient tries to cough up, but nothing works, since no sputum is produced.

Sometimes a nonproductive cough can cause nausea and vomiting. Some time after the onset of the disease, sputum begins to be produced in small quantities, but this does not make the coughing process easier, since the exudate has a viscous, thick consistency.

During the process of illness, the body activates its protective functions, including coughing, which clears the airways from irritating foreign factors.

With pharyngitis, such foreign factors are sputum and microbes concentrated in it.

The absence of sputum can accompany pharyngitis for a long time, this indicates the absence of complications in which the tonsils and laryngeal mucosa are exposed to infection.

In addition to a dry “barking” cough, pharyngitis is characterized by sore throat, change in voice timbre, painful swallowing, swelling and irritation of the mucous membrane.

A pronounced inflammatory process excites a large number of cough receptors, which leads to an increase in coughing attacks.

To cure a cough, cough suppressants alone are not enough.

Complex etiotropic therapy will be required to reduce the risk of symptom recurrence.

Important to know: Features of the treatment of pharyngitis in adults

Methods to combat cough

To cure a cough completely, you must first transfer it from a dry form to a productive form with sputum separation.

One of the primary ways in this case is to drink plenty of warm liquid, which helps restore water balance in the body.

Thanks to this, sputum will be released more intensely, and its removal will help get rid of painful dryness in the throat.

As a liquid for consumption, you can use herbal decoctions, fruit drinks, warm milk, as well as alkaline mineral water, which, due to its chemical composition, ensures the release of sputum, and, accordingly, helps get rid of cough.

Therapeutic measures

With pharyngitis, the symptoms are relatively easy to treat.

The main symptomatic remedy that allows you to quickly cure a cough is inhalation, based on direct impact on the affected areas.

Adding essential oils to the inhalation solution helps soften the mucous membrane of the throat; in this case, sputum will also be produced more intensely.

Inhalations designed to treat cough are recommended to be carried out in the following sequence:

procedure using bronchodilators;
inhalation with a mucolytic drug;
inhalation with an antiseptic composition;
use of anti-inflammatory drugs.

Between each procedure you must take a break of 20 minutes.

Inhalations help to quickly treat symptoms of dry cough in children. Under the age of 7 years, it is recommended to use a nebulizer, as steam procedures can aggravate the situation and cause harm to health.

To enhance the effect of inhalation, you should take anti-inflammatory drugs:

gargling with herbal infusions and antiseptic solutions (Miramistin, Chlorhexidine, infusion of eucalyptus and chamomile);
lozenges and lozenges that have anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects (Septolete, Faringosept, Falimint, Terasil, Travisil);
irrigating the throat with antiseptic sprays (Ingalipt, Hexoral, Tantum Verde).

Important to know: How to treat viral pharyngitis

Cough with pharyngitis at an early stage can be cured with the help of topical medications.

However, if the symptoms have become painful for the patient and significantly worsen his well-being, systemic mucolytic and expectorant agents should be used:

ACC;
Bromhexine;
Ambroxol;
Mucalitin;
Gerbion.

As a result of the influence of these drugs, sputum begins to be more actively produced and liquefied.

Lazolvan in the form of inhalations is considered an effective and operative remedy that helps cure cough within three days.

Antibacterial treatment for pharyngitis is prescribed only when there is a bacterial infection; in this case, systemic antibiotics are indicated, for example:

Flemoxin;
Amoxicillin, etc.

If the disease is viral in nature, then antiviral drugs will help treat it:

Ingavirin;
Isoprinosine.

For painful paroxysmal coughs, both adults and children are prescribed antitussive drugs that inhibit the activity of the cough center and help get rid of annoying night coughs.

The most effective of these means are considered:

Treatment with drugs

It will take a long time to treat an obsessive dry cough with pharyngitis (acute or chronic). Therapy is aimed at relieving the symptoms of the disease and eliminating factors that support the course of the inflammatory process.

Treatment of the acute phase includes:

depression of the sensitivity of the cough center;
reduction of irritation of the mucous membranes of the pharynx;
instillation of oil preparations into the nasal passages;
irrigation of the pharynx;
use of antiseptics, antihistamines, antibiotics.

Drugs to suppress the cough reflex in adult patients cannot have a therapeutic effect, but they relieve the symptoms of the disease. This group of medications included: Codelac, Tusuprex, Sinekod, Oxeladin.

To reduce sensitivity, it is recommended to use the drug Libexin, and oil compositions, for example Pinosol, should be dripped into the nose. Such treatment will help reduce the degree of pharyngeal irritation and reduce coughing.

It is necessary to irrigate the throat cavity with saline or soda solutions. This will relieve the feeling of tickling and dry mouth. To destroy pathogenic microflora, the throat is sprayed with the antiseptic Miramistin or lozenges, tablets Septolete, Strepsils, Faringosept, Falimint are dissolved. The remedies will relieve pain and inflammation from the affected areas.

If the nature of the cough and pharyngitis is allergic, you cannot do without antihistamines. It is recommended to treat cough with Zodak and Loratadine.

Antibiotics for illness are necessary only if:

cough became barking;
body temperature increased;
the disease has a bacterial etiology.

It is necessary to treat the chronic form of the pathology in adult patients with drugs that do not dry out the mucous membranes of the throat. Quite often, the treatment regimen includes antibacterial inhalation drugs: Tantum Verde, Bioparox, Hexoral.

An attack of dry night cough goes away if the medications described above are used to suppress the cough center. First generation antihistamines, for example, Tavegil, Suprastin, will also be effective. These medications induce drowsiness, suppress coughing, and help you rest at night.

It is useful to lubricate the throat with an oil suspension, inhalation with saline solution, alkaline mineral waters, thinning and expectorant drugs.

When atrophic pharyngitis is diagnosed in adults, but no treatment was undertaken in the acute phase, spasm of the larynx may begin and the disease may progress to laryngitis. To treat this condition, an otolaryngologist or therapist will prescribe:

throat irrigation;
oil inhalations;
lubricating the throat with Lugol;
regular rinsing with propolis tincture.

The patient will necessarily need to take a course of multivitamins, minerals, and drugs to stimulate the immune system. It is highly advisable to treat the disease in the mountains or at sea. If you follow these recommendations, dry cough and pharyngitis will go away forever.

Therapeutic measures for chronic forms of the disease

The chronic inflammatory process is dangerous because it can over time cover the mucous membrane of the larynx and trachea, while sputum begins to be produced in the bronchi.

To reduce the risk of developing chronic pharyngitis, it is necessary to treat the acute form of the disease in time; for this, you should first consult a doctor who will determine in what way and with what drugs a specific case of pharyngitis should be treated.

The classic treatment regimen for cough in chronic pharyngitis includes the following methods:

lubricating the throat with products based on essential oils (allows you to soften the mucous membrane and get rid of dryness and soreness);
inhalations using mineral water and preparations containing sea water;
taking medications containing bacterial lysates;
mechanical removal of granules using cauterization with trichloroacetic acid;
cryotherapy, electric current, through which hypertrophic formations are eliminated;
physiotherapeutic procedures to help treat cough.

Important to know: What is pharyngitis?

In the case of advanced stages of pharyngitis, surgical treatment is sometimes required, so it is recommended to treat the pathology without delay, when the first signs and symptoms occur.

For chronic pharyngitis in children, inhalation of Essentuki or Narzan mineral water helps treat cough and alleviate the condition.

In addition, therapy should be supplemented with a gentle diet, excluding rough and spicy foods that irritate the sore throat.

Children are recommended to rinse with antiseptics and irrigate their throats with antimicrobial sprays; infusions of chamomile and sage in the form of solutions for inhalation and gargling are also recommended in reasonable doses.

Cough with pharyngitis is the main indicator of diagnosis

Cough with pharyngitis is considered the main sign of a common inflammatory disease of the pharynx. Over time, spreading to the mucous membranes and lymph nodes, the disease affects the nasopharynx.

Unlike adults, in whom the disease in most cases resolves with complications and develops into a chronic process, children, with the correct therapeutic tactics, are more likely to be cured of cough with pharyngitis.

Paroxysmal coughing brings a lot of discomfort to a person, so at the initial stage of the disease it is advised to visit a doctor.

Causes of cough with pharyngitis

The root cause of a dry cough with pharyngitis is damage to the nasopharynx by a viral, bacterial, fungal infection, a reaction to allergens or injury to the mucous membrane. An unpleasant condition interferes with normal life processes - while eating, sleeping, a dry cough brings discomfort, distracts and interferes with the patient and his environment.

Attention! Reflex coughing occurs when the tissue of the pharynx is exposed to pathogenic microorganisms. A protective mechanism is triggered, thanks to which the patient recovers from the disease faster.

Moreover, inflammation of the pharynx and lymph nodes with cough symptoms appears after mucous secretions drain from the nasopharynx, as vasodilation occurs. Mucus is formed as a result of the inflammatory process of the posterior and lateral walls of the nasal cavity and pharynx.

Other probable causes of the disease, the main symptom of which is cough symptoms:

dysfunction of the digestive system - gastritis, pancreatitis, cholecystitis;
smoking and alcohol abuse;
tonsillectomy - removal of the tonsils;
endocrine pathologies;
heart, kidney, pulmonary failure, pneumonia;
frequent use of vasoconstrictor nasal drops, breathing through the mouth.

If cough symptoms do not go away for a long time, the disease becomes chronic - this condition is characterized by thickening of the walls of the pharynx. The following actions indicate the transition of the pathology to a chronic condition:

Delayed therapy;
Erroneous or not very effective therapy;
Untreated inflammation.

In a chronic process, the following symptoms are noted:

sore throat;
sensation of a foreign body in the throat;
coughing

Reference! Chronic atrophic pharyngitis is characterized by thinning of the pharyngeal walls. The signs of the pathology are the same - dry cough, a feeling of rawness in the throat, dry mucous membranes.

How to treat cough with pharyngitis

Patients often wonder how to treat cough with pharyngitis. If inflammation is not accompanied by mucus secretion, there is no point in the patient taking mucolytic and expectorant medications. The most important thing in the development of the process is to eliminate the source of inflammation, restore the pharyngeal mucosa and alleviate the person’s condition.

To eliminate the pathological condition, the following medications are recommended for use:

antitussive drugs - Sinekod, Gerbion, Sinetoss;
medications that restore the condition of the mucous membrane - Prenoxdiazine, Libexin, Tusavit;
antiallergic medications, if the disease has developed due to allergies - Zodak, Erius, Tavegil;
drugs that relieve inflammation in the pharynx - Erespal, Fluditek;
sucking and dissolving tablets that relieve sore throat;
the use of nasal vasoconstrictor drops that reduce swelling of the nasopharyngeal mucosa - Pinosol, Rinonorm, Naphthyzin;

The use of sprays is recommended as local anti-inflammatory drugs - Tantum Verde, Hexoral, Ingalipt, Bioparox. Aerosols stop coughing attacks and relieve painful symptoms. Effective methods are considered to be rinsing and inhalation, which are performed using antiseptics - Miramistin, Rotokan, Furacilin, Lazolvan.

Note! Antibacterial drugs are prescribed mainly for bacterial inflammation if an adult’s body temperature rises and a dry cough turns into a “barking” cough. The dosage and duration of antibiotic use is determined solely by the attending physician. You should not self-medicate, otherwise complications may occur.

Treatment of a child

If pharyngitis has developed in a child, it is advisable to treat cough under the supervision of an otolaryngologist, because for each type of inflammatory disease there is a list of medications. In addition, the list of medications for children differs significantly from those used to treat the disease in adults. Medicines intended for children have fewer side effects and are milder.

It is important! Expectorants are not suitable for treating a dry cough, and antibiotics that target bacterial inflammation will not be useful for allergic and viral diseases of the pharynx.

Therapeutic measures are carried out taking into account the age of the child, the type and severity of pharyngitis. In addition to medications, children (as well as adults) need to adhere to a daily routine and diet:

it is necessary to ensure bed rest and proper sleep;
frequent drinking;
diet food - food is served warm, fried, salty, fatty foods are excluded from the diet - anything that can injure the throat;
local therapy using anti-inflammatory sprays;
drugs that relieve cough (prescribed by an ENT doctor after diagnosing pharyngitis).

Do not be afraid of a cough that does not go away after treatment - this is a residual phenomenon that occurs against the background of a decrease in the immune system. To normalize immunity, it is advisable to take a course of multivitamins, spend more time in the fresh air, and avoid overexertion.

Physiotherapy has a beneficial effect on the child’s recovery, especially with chronic pharyngitis. The most effective are:

exposure to electrophoresis with potassium iodide;
mud therapy;
paraffin therapy.

But the treatment will be ineffective if, after physiotherapy, you take the child out into the cold air - for this you need to stay in a hospital for one and a half to two hours.

If the throat is severely affected by pharyngitis, the attending physician decides to use liquid nitrogen (cryodestruction) or laser (laser coagulation).

Alternative treatment for cough with pharyngitis

Traditional medicine does not cure pharyngitis, but successfully relieves the symptoms of the disease. Therefore, traditional healers recommend taking infusions, tinctures, decoctions, making compresses from medicinal herbal infusions and other inexpensive but effective remedies. For example:

honey has bactericidal properties, so it is recommended to eat a spoonful of honey 3 times a day;
warm drinks: tea, milk, homemade fruit drinks, compotes;
rinse with infusions of oak bark, calendula, chamomile.

For treatment to bring results, you need to combine traditional medicine with alternative medicine. If after 7 days there is no improvement, you should visit a doctor to prescribe antibacterial therapy.

Cough with pharyngitis is the main indicator of diagnosis Link to main publication

Source: https://kashlya-net.ru/kashel/kashel-pri-faringite

General recommendations

Cough with pharyngitis involves not only the use of medications, but also following some important rules that speed up the healing process and eliminate symptoms:

compliance with bed rest during the period of exacerbation of symptoms;
ensuring adequate sleep;
exclusion from the diet of spicy, fatty, cold and hot foods;
quitting smoking and alcohol;
monitoring the humidity levels in the patient’s room (the air should not be too warm and dry).

Cough with pharyngitis: how to treat it in adults and children if it doesn’t go away for a long time

Cough with pharyngitis is the main symptom of the disease. It starts out dry, but becomes softer as it heals. Seizures tire a person. They can be so strong that chest pain, tickling and nausea appear. If the situation has gone too far, immediate medical attention is required.

Associated symptoms

Acute pharyngitis implies rapid development of the clinical picture. First of all, a person is worried about a sore and sore throat or “empty throat,” when even swallowing saliva or water causes inconvenience. The temperature does not reach 37.5 0C, but in children under 2 years of age it can rise to 38 0C and higher.

Due to the development of atrophic changes in the mucous membrane, nasal discharge is watery. They are almost impossible to stop with vasoconstrictor drops.

With chronic pharyngitis, in addition to cough, intoxication, general malaise, and muscle pain are observed. The temperature stays around 37 0C. The secretion from the nose is thicker and is blown out of the lung.

Diagnostics

To accurately determine the disease, it is enough to go to an appointment with an otolaryngologist. Based on the totality of the complaints presented and the characteristic picture of pharyngoscopy (examination of the pharynx using instruments), the specialist will be able to quickly make a diagnosis.

In the acute form, inflammation of the throat mucosa is observed, which spreads to the tonsils. They are covered with a gray-yellow coating. A chronic course is indicated by thickening of the tissues of the pharynx and soft palate.

To find out the cause of pharyngitis, you need to take a swab from the throat. The samples are sent into a nutrient medium and after 5–7 days the exact causative agent of inflammation is known. Therapy is prescribed without waiting for research results, after which, if necessary, the regimen is adjusted.

Inhalations and rinsing

If pharyngitis becomes chronic, it is necessary to switch to medications that do not have a drying effect. It is recommended to give preference to inhaled forms of antimicrobial drugs - Bioparox, Hexoral, Tantum-Verde.

In addition, you can lubricate the throat with pharyngitis with Miramistin, gargle with Lugol's solution or propolis tincture, inhale vapors of mineral waters or saline. All this contributes to the healing of the mucous membrane and the transition of a dry cough to a wet one.

Folk remedies

Alternative medicine has its own methods of combating cough with pharyngitis. It is believed that three tablespoons of honey eaten during the day is enough to ease the symptoms of the disease.

Additionally, it is recommended to consume warm milk with natural butter or propolis. Pharmaceutical rinses can be replaced with a decoction of oak bark and willow, mixed in a 1:1 ratio. For 200 ml of boiling water, 30 g of dried ingredients are required.

A good result is obtained after drinking potato juice. A spoonful of the product is drunk, but not swallowed immediately, but lingered in the mouth for a little while. The procedure must be repeated 3 times a day.

Warm chamomile or linden teas, with the addition of raspberry jam, honey, and pureed cranberries will complement the basic therapy for pharyngitis. With their help, the body will receive the necessary dose of vitamins and microelements.

Prevention

Pharyngitis, like other colds, is easier to prevent than to cure. A good help for this will be giving up bad habits. It is also worth reviewing your diet in favor of vegetables, fruits and herbs.

It is imperative to maintain a drinking regime. Lack of fluid in the body causes drying out of the mucous membranes and, as a result, their traumatization and a decrease in local protective functions. Therefore, they become entry points for infections. To avoid this, it is enough to drink 1.5 to 2 liters of clean water per day.

Moderate but regular physical activity will keep the immune system in good shape, as will long walks. But here it is important not to overdo it, but to give the body time to recover between workouts.

Regular wet cleaning and ventilation of rooms before going to bed will create the necessary healthy microclimate.