Dry cough without fever in an adult: how to treat

A dry paroxysmal cough can completely exhaust a person. Even when it is a normal protective reflex, it can be difficult to tolerate. When a disease accompanied by this symptom develops, the patient suffers seriously.

Cough accompanies many illnesses. It is because of him that they make themselves known so strongly. This condition continues until sputum begins to separate. But even then it is still necessary for it to completely leave the person’s respiratory tract.

Seeing a doctor in this case is an urgent need. Only a specialist can make an accurate diagnosis and select the necessary pharmacological drugs. If the patient is not provided with timely medical care, he may develop serious complications.

Causes of cough

Before treating a beginning cough, you need to find out why it appeared.
It is often a symptom of a sore throat; when a foreign body enters the respiratory tract, the lymph nodes may become enlarged. During the first days, the cough does not produce sputum; it is dry. When body temperature rises, allergies increase, mucous viscosity increases, and sputum is formed. Due to its viscosity, large quantities of sputum accumulate in the respiratory tract and cannot escape. Coughing helps remove mucus.

It should be taken into account that a cough can be triggered by diseases of the heart, intestines, stomach, allergies, and inflammation in the nervous system.

Treatment of a beginning cough

1. If you notice that you are starting to get sick, you need to lie down; you cannot go outside.

2. Drink as much warm drink as possible - uzvar, weak tea with lemons, infusion with rose hips, this will improve sputum separation and the cough will go away quickly.

3. Maintain optimal humidity in the room, constantly ventilate the room, do wet cleaning, this will make it easier to recover.

4. Use of warm compresses. If you notice a dry cough, you need to use the following medicine for a cough compress: take a few drops of castor oil, add alcohol, vodka, rub it into your back and chest area, then wrap yourself in a warm scarf or scarf. This way you can warm up well. It is best to do this at night.

Medicines for incipient cough

First, you need to turn a dry cough into a wet, productive one; for this it is recommended to use Tusuprex, Mucaltin, Bromhexine, Sinekod, Thermopsis.

For the first few days, you need to dissolve mint lozenges, and it is also recommended to use herbal preparations - breastfeeding. It is advised to use inhalations when a cough begins, this can soften the cough and get rid of dryness and soreness. You can breathe over a pan of boiling soda solution and potatoes. It is recommended to use decoctions of oak bark, coltsfoot, and chamomile. For the procedure to be effective, it must be performed up to 5 times a day, for no less than 10 minutes. When a person cannot do all the inhalations at once, you need to drink hot liquid; you need to drink up to two liters of water per day.

The goal of treating a beginning cough is to find out the cause of the cough, then do everything to increase the amount of sputum and dilute it, and improve the condition of the mucous membrane in the respiratory organs.

Medicines must be taken with extreme caution; if a large amount of sputum accumulates in the lungs, this can lead to various complications - pneumonia, emphysema.

A common cough that accompanies an acute respiratory viral infection or acute respiratory infection is recommended to be treated with mucolytic drugs - Doctor Mom, Pertussin syrups, breast mixtures, anise drops, syrups containing marshmallow root and licorice. A beginning cough can be cured with Ambroxol, Bromhexine, Acelylcystenine.

Effective methods for treating an incipient cough

1. Before undergoing a course of therapy, you need to find out the cause of the cough. For acute respiratory viral infections and acute respiratory infections, appropriate treatment is selected.

2. When the cough just begins, it is accompanied by a strong sore throat and runny nose, you need to take action immediately. To do this, you need to prepare a solution with sea salt and rinse your nose with it as often as possible. Then apply anti-inflammatory drops. To gargle, use Furacilin, a solution with salt, soda and iodine. You can use chamomile decoction, aloe juice, or sage infusion.

3. Put on warm clothes and ventilate the room, monitor the humidity. If the air is dry, the cough will begin to worsen and may develop into laryngitis or bronchitis.

5. When the cough just starts, you need to turn it into a wet one. An old and reliable remedy is used: you need to dissolve butter in warm milk, add a little honey, licorice, and thermopsis. Boil and drink. It is recommended to drink tea with the addition of lemon and ginger.

6. Warming procedures are an effective remedy. You need to take castor oil, add a little alcohol, apply it to the sore area, and wrap yourself in a warm blanket.

7. It is advised to rub your palms and feet with the garlic mixture, then put on warm woolen socks and go to bed.

8. Apple cider vinegar with hot water helps with a beginning cough.

9. When you start to cough, you need to pour dry mustard into a sock. The procedure is performed before bedtime. You can steam your feet in mustard, and the next day there will be noticeable relief.

10 . The best medicine is pepper plaster.

11. A cabbage compress helps get rid of a beginning cough. It must first be lubricated with honey. One sheet is applied to the back, the other to the chest, then plastic wrap is applied. Put something warm on top and leave the compress overnight. It has an anti-inflammatory, stretching effect, so it immediately becomes easier.

12. Cough can often occur due to a runny nose. In this situation, you need to use Sanorin and Galazolin drops. Sunflower, sea buckthorn, rosehip oil also helps, used warm.

13. You can prepare garlic and onion drops if there is no allergic reaction. First dilute with water, drop no more than one drop into each nostril.

14. Drops with honey will help with a beginning cough. To do this, take linden honey and add warm water. Apply 7 drops in the morning, afternoon and evening.

So, a beginning cough must be treated urgently, and under no circumstances should it be neglected in order to avoid complications. For treatment, both folk effective methods of treatment and traditional ones are used.

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Cases of severe cough and runny nose not accompanied by fever

• Some cases of ARVI. With some viral infections of the respiratory tract, a cough may well appear, accompanied by a runny nose, but not accompanied by an increase in temperature. The throat itself may not hurt, but a strong cough will bother you. If you have a persistent, prolonged cough, you should consult a general practitioner.
• Allergic reactions. A cough without fever, accompanied by a runny nose, may also appear due to allergies, for example, to dust, to pollen of various flowering plants, to animal fur, to various aerosols, etc. Allergens can be found in carpets and clothes, even in bed linen, if you use low-quality household chemicals or use washing powders with surfactants of more than 35%.
• Post-infectious cough. After a person has recovered from viral or infectious diseases of the respiratory organs and tract, he may still experience a sore throat for a long time. Sometimes this lasts up to one to one and a half months.

What to do first

Cough is a symptom of many respiratory diseases caused by infection or allergies. To prevent complications, start treatment at the first signs of acute respiratory infections. Timely provision of assistance prevents the spread of infection to the lungs.

How to treat a beginning cough in a child and an adult:

• Bed rest. Complete rest is recommended for 3-5 days. The patient is covered with a warm blanket and a small pillow is placed under the head.
• Air humidification. Hang damp sheets, towels, blankets in the room or use a humidifier. To reduce the viscosity of sputum, maintain air humidity at 70%.
• Ventilation. Providing access to fresh air has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the respiratory system. To speed up recovery, the room is ventilated every 2-3 hours.
• Drink plenty of fluids. For an infectious cough, it is recommended to drink a lot of tea, milk with honey, lingonberry juice, and alkaline mineral water. Liquids reduce symptoms of intoxication and thin bronchial mucus. Thanks to this, a dry cough becomes productive (wet).
• Wet cleaning. To reduce the frequency of coughing attacks, remove dust collectors from the room - carpets, soft toys. During cleaning, not only the floor is wiped, but also all horizontal surfaces - window sills, tables, racks, shelves, etc.

A persistent cough that lasts more than 3 days, accompanied by shortness of breath or chest pain, is a reason to consult a doctor.

How to treat a beginning cough

At the early stage of acute respiratory infections, a nonproductive cough occurs, in which sputum is not released. It is accompanied by a burning sensation, a feeling of a lump in the throat and chest pain. Therefore, on the first day of illness, it is especially important to take antitussives that suppress the cough reflex. When the cough becomes wet, you need to switch to mucolytics and secretomotor, that is, expectorants.

Cough is a symptom, not an independent disease. To reduce inflammation and reduce the sensitivity of receptors in the ENT organs, they additionally resort to:

• gargling;
• inhalations;
• rubbing;
• compresses.

Comprehensive treatment increases the chances of a quick recovery.
But if there is no tendency to improve your health, do not delay your visit to the doctor.

Medicines in tablets and syrups

Dry cough in children and adults is eliminated with antitussives. They are divided into 2 groups - central and peripheral action. The former reduce the sensitivity of the nerve endings in the throat, while the latter suppress the functions of the cough center of the brain. If the cough is just starting, use the following antitussives:

When taking narcotic (opioid) cough tablets, strictly follow the dosage. Drug abuse is dangerous due to respiratory depression and addiction.

After 2-3 days, the cough becomes productive, so the sore throat decreases.

To reduce the viscosity of mucus and speed up its elimination, take medications with mucolytic (secretolytic) and expectorant effects:

To speed up the expectoration of mucus, take bronchodilators - medications that increase the lumen of the bronchi:

• Fenoterol;
• Combivent;
• Duo-medihaler;
• Formoterol;
• Bambuterol;
• Salbutamol;
• Indacaterol.

If there are signs of bacterial inflammation - yellow or green sputum, white plaque on the walls of the throat - the doctor will prescribe antibiotics.
Infection in the ENT organs is destroyed by Augmentin, Doxycycline, Clarithromycin, Moxifloxacin.

Lollipops

If you complain of a cough and sore throat, you can give your child medicinal lozenges. To treat colds, products based on essential oils, antiseptics, and herbal extracts are used.

Before treating an incipient cough in children, consult your pediatrician. Due to underdevelopment of the immune system, serious complications are possible.

Pharmacy lozenges for sore throat and cough:

• Hexoral;
• Vokasept;
• Doctor Mom;
• Strepsils;
• Agisept;
• Bronchicum;
• Septolete;
• Faringosept;
• Carmolis;
• Travisil;
• Anti-Angin.

Lollipops are recommended for children over 5 years old. The course of treatment depends on the cause of cough and sore throat and varies from 3 to 5 days. If you can't go to the pharmacy, try making homemade lollipops.

Traditional recipes for cough drops:

• Ginger. Pour 2/3 cup of granulated sugar into a saucepan, add 30-40 ml of water and the juice of ½ lemon. Add 1 tsp into the heated mass. mashed ginger root, ¼ tsp. chopped cloves. Simmer over low heat, stirring constantly. Add 15 ml of melted honey to the semi-finished caramel. After 2 minutes, the brown mass is poured into molds and left until hardened. When coughing, dissolve 1 lozenge 1 hour after meals up to 5 times a day.
• With cocoa butter. In a saucepan, mix ½ cup of honey and granulated sugar, add 60 g of cocoa butter. Bring to a boil in a water bath and stir. If desired, add 2-3 drops of eucalyptus oil. The homogeneous mass is cooled. Eat 1 tsp. up to 4-5 times a day.

Pharmacy and homemade lozenges disinfect the throat and speed up the healing of the mucous membrane. Thanks to this, the sensitivity of nerve endings decreases and the frequency of coughing attacks decreases.

Sprays and rinses

Local cough treatment is one of the safest and most effective ways to combat inflammation of the throat, bronchi and trachea. To ease the course of acute respiratory infections, aerosol preparations with antiseptic, sedative, anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties are suitable:

• Tantum Verde;
• Oralcept;
• Strepsils;
• Faringosept;
• Inhalipt;
• Hexoral;
• Angal S;
• Miramistin;
• Sinupret;
• Lugol spray.

To achieve the desired effect, the throat is irrigated up to 5 times a day. Perform the procedure 30 minutes before or 1 hour after meals.

The feeling of a lump in the throat and the first bouts of coughing are reasons for local therapy with antiseptics and healing agents.

If your throat is red and your tonsils are enlarged, do not neglect rinsing. For irrigation of the mucous membranes the following are used:

• Miramistin;
• Furacilin;
• Chlorophyllipt;
• Rotokan;
• Stopangin;
• Angiosept;
• Eludril;
• Malavit;
• Chlorhexidine;
• Sodium chloride solution (saline).

When treating inflammation of the upper respiratory tract, homemade folk remedies for gargling are no less good:

• Sea salt solution. Boil 250 ml of water over heat for 2 minutes. Add 1 tsp to cooled water. sea ​​salt. If you have a sore throat, you can drop 2-3 drops of eucalyptus oil into the solution. Rinsing is performed every 2-3 hours for 3 days.
• Tea with thyme. 2 tsp. the herbs are steamed with 200 ml of water. Leave in a thermos for half an hour. Gargle 4-5 times a day.
• Decoction of calendula and chamomile. Mix ½ tbsp. l. herbs Pour in 300 ml of water and boil for 3-4 minutes. The filtered, cooled decoction is used to irrigate the throat up to 5 times a day.

If a child has a sore throat, rinse every 2 hours.
To prevent burns, decoctions, teas and solutions are cooled to a temperature of 37-38°C.

Rubs and compresses

The onset of acute respiratory infections indicates damage to the respiratory system. To prevent mucus from getting stuck in your lungs and make your cough more productive, try warming rubs:

• Dr. Theiss eucalyptus;
• Pulmex;
• Roztiran;
• Doctor Mom;
• Turpentine ointment;
• Vishnevsky ointment;
• Golden Star;
• Badger;
• Propolis ointment.

Depending on the location of the inflammation, warming ointments are applied to:

• upper chest;
• intercostal and scapular zones;
• whiskey;
• wings of the nose.

The treated areas of the body are insulated with a flannel towel or woolen scarf. Treatment of an incipient cough takes from 3 to 5 days. If there is no improvement, contact an ENT specialist.

If pharmaceutical ointments are not at hand, use goose or pork fat. It is applied to the back and chest every evening before bed.

Cough due to ARVI is treated with warm compresses. Pharmaceutical products used:

To eliminate cough and restore the drainage function of the lungs, compresses with folk remedies are suitable:

• Honey. 20 g of flour are mixed with 60 ml of melted honey and 2 tbsp. l. sunflower oil. The mass is applied to gauze and applied to the upper part of the chest. Cover with film and a towel. Keep the compress for at least 1 hour. Perform the procedure three times a day.
• Mustard and alcohol. 1 tbsp. l. dry mustard mixed with 3 tbsp. l. flour. Add vodka or diluted ethyl alcohol so that a plastic mass is obtained. The cake is applied to the chest for 2 hours.

Doctors do not recommend heat treatment unless the cause of the cough is clear. Warming procedures for purulent inflammation are dangerous due to complications - abscess, sepsis.

Inhalations

If you treat your cough correctly, it will go away within 3-5 days. Inhalations are effective in the fight against respiratory diseases. At elevated temperatures, you can use not steam, but only aerosol inhalers - nebulizers. To stop a cough and relieve inflammation in the throat, saline solution is poured into the nebulizer chamber, which is mixed with:

• Fluimucil;
• Sinupret;
• Mukaltin;
• Ambrohexal;
• Bronchosan.

In the absence of a nebulizer, they resort to steam-moisture inhalations, for which you will need a saucepan, a waffle towel and a folk remedy:

• Recipe No. 1. Chamomile, thyme, and calendula are mixed in equal proportions. 4 tbsp. l. herbs are boiled in 1 liter of water for 5 minutes. Add 5-7 drops of fir oil to the decoction.
• Recipe No. 2. 1 liter of Borjomi is heated to 45°C, pour in ¼ tsp. eucalyptus or juniper oils.

If your throat hurts and coughing attacks bother you, you need to do wet inhalations for 5-10 minutes 3-4 times a day. The temperature of the liquid should not exceed 40-45°C.

Other methods

Before you can cure a cough, you need to determine its cause. If it is combined with nasal congestion, drowsiness and body aches, sore throat, the cause is a respiratory infection. When fighting acute respiratory infections at home, follow a diet aimed at sparing the throat mucosa. Temporarily exclude from the menu:

• spices;
• alcohol;
• seeds;
• hot dishes;
• nuts;
• mustard;
• adjika;
• sour fruits;
• carbonated drinks.

During treatment, drafts, sudden changes in temperature, and strong odors should be avoided.

Dry cough in adults. Treatment at home

A symptom such as a dry cough may be the body's reaction to allergens. But in

Basically, it is a sign of many respiratory diseases: acute respiratory infections, laryngitis, tracheitis and bronchitis, bronchial asthma, pneumonia, tuberculosis, etc. In older people, a dry cough often causes fungal infection of the respiratory system. To establish an accurate diagnosis and then prescribe a course of treatment, it is necessary to examine the patient and compile a medical history by a doctor (to get rid of the underlying ailment). To relieve a debilitating dry cough in adults, it is advisable to treat with drugs in combination with physiotherapy and traditional medicine.

Reactive cough

Irritants such as dust, smoke, pollen, mold, strong aromas of perfume and powder, and household chemicals often cause a dry cough in adults. Treatment in this case should begin by avoiding contact with the allergen. Attacks of dry cough are sometimes provoked by taking certain medications (drug allergies), so before taking new medications you should definitely read the instructions. An allergic dry cough can quickly turn into bronchial asthma. To avoid this, it is urgent to rid the body of the presence of pathogens in it - to do this, use anti-allergenic drugs, having received the recommendations of a doctor.

Treating dry cough at home: herbs and infusions

If you do not want to immediately resort to chemicals, use medicinal herbs. Herbal medicine significantly relieves dry cough in adults. Treatment of seasonal colds with folk remedies primarily involves drinking plenty of fluids. Warm tea with raspberry jam, honey, viburnum or grated currants helps. These foods are rich in vitamin C, which means they can strengthen the immune system and help the body cope with infection. Oregano, thyme, elecampane have an antitussive effect - these herbs are included in preparations for very strong, debilitating coughs. A decoction of peppermint is good for relieving attacks of dry cough (you can dilute a ready-made pharmacy tincture with tea). Try lubricating the dimple in your throat with the tincture if you feel a constant soreness. Frequent gargling and ingestion of herbal decoctions and infusions with enveloping (marshmallow root, flax seed), expectorant and anti-inflammatory effects (black elderberry flowers, 3-color violet herb, chamomile and linden flowers) ease the cough. The grass of plantain and string, licorice root, motherwort, valerian rhizome and elecampane root, rose hips, coltsfoot leaf are also used. Essential oil plants have a good expectorant effect; decoctions are prepared from them for drinking and inhalation. These are calamus, anise and fennel seeds, dill and caraway seeds, pine buds, eucalyptus leaves, lemon balm leaves, sage, thyme. You can make a collection by including 1-2 plants with different effects, for example: marshmallow roots, oregano grass and flowers, coltsfoot. Or this composition: licorice, plantain, coltsfoot. Of the simple medications, Mukaltin has proven itself well - a dry cough quickly softens and becomes moist after taking these tablets.

What to do if you have a painful dry cough?

Treatment in adults comes down to frequent intake (every hour or two) of a decoction in the following composition: calamus root, linden or elderberry flowers, St. John's wort leaves, thyme herb, coltsfoot, pine buds, anise and caraway seeds (all in equal parts ).

If it is not possible to prepare the remedy described above, use products that can be found in almost every home - onions, sugar and honey. Grind 500 g of onion, mix with 350 g of sugar and 3 tbsp. l. honey Dilute everything in 1 liter of water and simmer for 3 hours over low heat. Cool and strain. The finished medicine is stored in the refrigerator. You need to take it 1 tablespoon every 3-4 hours, after warming it up. They say that this remedy is very good at relieving dry coughs in adults. It is recommended to supplement the treatment by rubbing a mixture of goat fat and honey into the chest area (take in equal volumes). Then you need to wrap the body with compress paper, tie a down shawl or woolen cloth on top and go to bed.

Advice for those who suffer from a dry cough too often - prepare a healing wine from elecampane root, anise fruit, centaury herb and St. John's wort herb - take 20 g of each. Add 50 g of raisins to these ingredients and pour everything with dry red wine of good quality ( approximately 1.5 l), leave for 14 days. Take a glass half an hour before meals.

The last tip is very important.

If you have a lingering dry cough, you should be examined at a clinic. Only a doctor will determine the cause that caused the dry cough. In adults, treatment with folk remedies alone may be ineffective, especially if the disease is more severe than an ordinary acute respiratory infection.

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Symptoms of beginning complications

A superficial cough indicates damage to the upper respiratory tract. If treatment does not help, the trachea, bronchi and lungs are involved in inflammation. Complications are indicated by:

• deep dry cough;
• hoarseness of voice;
• feverish condition;
• expectoration of yellow mucus;
• enlarged cervical lymph nodes;
• wheezing;
• weight loss;
• pain behind the sternum and under the shoulder blades;
• heat;
• spasms of the respiratory muscles;
• labored breathing;
• worsening cough when lying down.

Cough is a leading sign of inflammatory diseases of the respiratory system.
To prevent complications, treatment begins at the first signs of acute respiratory infections - discomfort in the throat, nasal congestion. But if home treatment does not bring results within 2-3 days, make an appointment with a doctor.

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Cases of dry cough

1. Nervous stress . Various stressful situations, all kinds of nervous shocks and experiences often provoke the appearance of a severe cough.
2. Oncological diseases . A problem that has been bothering a person for a month may very well be a manifestation of incipient cancer of the lungs, trachea or throat. With such a prolonged, incessant dry cough, not accompanied by an increase in body temperature, you should be examined by a therapist, who, based on the symptoms and tests performed, will send you to more highly specialized specialists, a pulmonologist, a physiatrist, or an oncologist.
3. Heart diseases . Cardiac cough differs from smoker's cough and bronchial cough. This cough often begins after exercise, but, as is the case with brochial or smoker's cough, no phlegm is produced. In some cases, during exacerbations of heart disease, after a dry cough, slight bleeding may be observed, which is associated with disruption of the right cardiac ventricle, as a result of which blood stagnates in the lungs, which is expelled with expectoration. Also, against the background of a cough, a person may also feel an increased heartbeat, pain in the heart area, and shortness of breath.
4. Chronic diseases of the upper respiratory organs . Chronic diseases such as frontal sinusitis, sinusitis and sinusitis can, due to the flow of nasal mucus along the back walls of the throat, cause a non-temperature cough, which is concomitant and has nothing to do with the lungs, bronchi or esophagus.
5. Tuberculosis disease . A prolonged dry cough, often not accompanied by a rise in temperature, may be a consequence of the onset of tuberculous processes in the bronchi and lungs. Nowadays, this disease has become very widespread and is detected even among people of relatively high social status. The disease occurs as a result of stress that does not stop for a long time, insufficient rest, and frequent overwork. These factors undermine the body's protective functions, and since about 90% of residents are already infected with Koch's bacillus by the age of thirty, these disruptive factors often help these microbacteria to activate in the body.
6. Thyroid diseases . If nodular or diffuse enlargement of this gland occurs, pressure begins on the trachea, which can also cause a dry cough without fever in adults.
7. Gastrointestinal diseases . Such diseases can also cause a dry, fever-free cough. For example, in the case of esophageal-tracheal fistula, esophageal diverticula and reflux esophagitis, the upper parts of the esophagus are irritated after eating, which causes soreness and, as a result, a reflex dry cough.
8. Entry of a foreign body into the bronchi . Usually, in such cases, the cough ends as the foreign body leaves the respiratory tract through the same cough. But in case of damage to the intratracheal area by a foreign body, the illness may continue indefinitely; in any case, you should consult a specialist.

Treatment of a cough that has just appeared

Light coughing, which at first seems completely harmless, can pose a real threat and after a short period of time become a tangible problem for a person. They serve as messengers of a wide variety of diseases that require treatment: from colds to severe damage to various organs.

An incipient cough is the body’s protective reaction to various types of irritants. They may be:

• Bacteria that cause increased mucus production.
• Chemicals.
• Inflammatory processes occurring in the respiratory organs.
• Foreign particles entering the throat or trachea.
• Enlarged lymph nodes.
• Allergens.

Also, a sudden cough appears with various nervous disorders, diseases of the heart, gastrointestinal tract, and respiratory organs, which require immediate treatment.

A symptom that begins to appear may not be accompanied by any more unpleasant phenomena (fever, weakness, pain, etc.) and therefore seem like a minor problem, but experts recommend that you be quite wary of its appearance and visit a doctor for consultation at the first opportunity.

What does a dry cough without fever indicate?

A severe, dry cough without fever may be a sign of an incipient cold.

An increase in temperature is a signal of an inflammatory process in the body. Almost all diseases of the respiratory system that are provoked by exposure to pathogens cause fever, runny nose and cough.

This “speaks” that treatment needs to begin. If a cough occurs without other symptoms, then many believe that there is no reason to worry. Actually this is not true.

There are a huge number of reasons for coughing without fever:

1. an allergy that can occur as a result of an irritable reaction of the body to something. The most common allergens are dust, insect dander, pollen of certain plants, and perfumes. In this case, a protracted barking cough occurs, accompanied by a runny nose, lacrimation, redness of the nose and eyes. Some patients may experience a sore throat without a cough. It causes a constant desire to cough, that is, there is a feeling as if there is a lump in the throat that interferes with breathing and talking
2. The initial stage of pulmonary tuberculosis manifests itself as a dry cough. At first it occurs extremely rarely, so it is not even possible to suspect the disease, since there are no other symptoms. When the pathology is already at the peak of its development, then sputum, blood and mucous discharge and other symptoms are added to the cough, by which pulmonary tuberculosis can be recognized
3. oncological diseases in which neoplasm occurs. As it increases, it begins to put pressure on the respiratory system, which provokes a cough.
4. various sexually transmitted diseases. For example, with papillomavirus, neoplasms may appear in the larynx, which cause a prolonged and dry cough. There is no temperature or other symptoms that may “hint” at the type of disease.
5. development of pathologies of the cardiovascular system. Developing myocardial infarction, coronary disease, heart failure or heart disease - all this provokes a “cardiac” cough. It appears due to the fact that blood and fluid stagnate in the lungs. People with such diseases cough most often in a horizontal position. This reaction is due to the fact that with a weak heart (regardless of the disease), pressure and blood circulation are disrupted, and due to weak circulation, blood in the lungs is retained

Sage with cough milk: preparation and use

Also, a dry cough can be caused by unsanitary conditions, for example, a lot of dust, or mold on the walls in the premises. The house needs to be regularly cleaned, kept clean and ventilated, especially before going to bed. Dust is not only a strong irritant for the mucous membranes, but also an excellent environment for the development of many pathogens.

Features of the treatment of dry cough

If you have a dry cough, you need to take antitussive medications.

Treatment of dry cough differs from treatment of wet cough. You cannot self-medicate, since therapy will directly depend on the disease that caused the cough without fever.

For prolonged cough, the following medications are usually prescribed:

• mucoregulators are a group of drugs that are responsible for the production of secretion in the bronchi. Most often they are used for colds and inflammatory processes in the lungs and bronchi. The most common representatives of this category are Alteyka, Ambroxol, Bromhexine
• antibiotics - Amoxiclav, Amoxicillin - these are drugs that have an antibacterial effect and kill bacteria that cause coughing
• reflex-type medications that are taken for colds. You need to be extremely careful with such drugs, as they block the part of the brain responsible for the cough reflex. Medicines from this group can be addictive in large doses and are therefore available only with a prescription.
• proteolytic-type preparations are intended for rapid separation of sputum and its removal, for example - Gelomirtol)

With a dry cough, during treatment it is important to eliminate the cause of its occurrence, and then deal with soothing the throat. If the cough is dry, but there is phlegm, then all the drugs described above will help separate it and remove it from the bronchi.

Causes of wet and lingering cough at normal body temperature

A wet cough appears only with respiratory diseases

In addition to dry cough, there is also a wet cough. It occurs when mucus appears in the bronchi. Also, there is no elevated temperature.

Let's look at the most common reasons:

1. side effect or residual effect. It happens that after a long-term disease of the respiratory system, for example bronchitis, tracheitis, the cough remains for some time until the mucous membrane is restored. Usually after recovery, sputum can be coughed up for another 1-2 weeks
2. an inflammatory process in the larynx (false croup), which is manifested by swelling of the pharynx, severe cough (both dry and wet). Sputum appears in the larynx, which creates pressure on the soft tissues, and, as a result, the patient begins to cough

In addition to diseases, there are many other reasons for the appearance of cough, for example, a long history of smoking, in which tar and nicotine clog the bronchi and lungs. After some time, the smoker begins to cough, trying to cough up phlegm.

Regardless of the type of cough and its cause, you must consult a doctor and undergo an examination. To identify the exact disease and begin to treat it. The sooner a person applies, the greater the chance of quick treatment and a speedy recovery.

Methods for treating wet cough

Expectorants will help thin and remove mucus.

For a wet cough, expectorants are also needed to fully remove the mucus and bacteria that form in it. For this, two types of drugs are used, the first of which is based on herbal components, and the second has a resorptive effect.

Herbal preparations include Alteyka, ivy extract, and plantain syrup. These plants are famous for their strong mucolytic, expectorant and thinning properties. In addition, herbal medicines have much fewer contraindications and side effects, since they do not contain synthetics in their composition.

Regardless of the cause of the cough and the method of treating it, during therapy you need to follow some rules:

• use inhalations, which can be done frequently in the absence of fever
• drink plenty of fluids, preferably warm (but not hot, so as not to irritate an already sore throat)
• quit smoking
• In addition to syrups and tablets, take cough drops to regularly soothe your throat

It is important to remember that all stages of treatment must be carried out under the supervision of a doctor. Self-medication can harm your health and worsen the situation.

How to treat a beginning cough?

It is permissible to independently combat reflex spasms of the respiratory tract in the early stages only if they are caused by a cold. It is appropriate to assume such a reason if the whole family has developed a cough, and at the same time a runny nose, sore throat, and headache have been noticed. To successfully get rid of an incipient symptom, it is necessary to simultaneously treat the underlying disease that provoked it. The following methods effectively help alleviate the patient’s condition and overcome an incipient cough in the early stages:

• Rinsing the nasopharynx. They are made using a medicinal composition of sea salt, which is drawn in through the nose and comes out of the mouth.
• Gargling. They are performed using solutions of furatsilin, soda, iodine, herbal infusions (sage, aloe, chamomile). Cough procedures are repeated every hour in order to relieve incipient inflammation and wash away bacteria deposited on the nasopharyngeal mucosa.
• Maintaining a healthy indoor microclimate. If a cough suddenly appears, it is very important to ventilate the room well, carry out daily wet cleaning, do not smoke indoors, and remove all allergens.
• Various warming treatments help in treating the disease. The easiest way to get rid of a cough is hot foot baths with mustard dissolved in water. Afterwards, you can rub your feet with garlic or apple cider vinegar, and apply a pepper patch to your heels. This must be done before bedtime. It should be taken into account that warming up is prohibited at elevated body temperatures.
• If the onset of a cough is sudden and dry in nature, then it is imperative to try to transform it into a wet one. This treatment is effectively promoted by drinking hot milk with honey and butter, plantain tincture, and licorice root. Before going to bed, it is recommended to drink raspberry tea or warm alkaline mineral water.
• Treatment of an incipient cough can be carried out with the help of medications: bromhexine, mucaltin, broncholitin, lazolvan, tusuprex. Mint candies and lozenges are quite effective in relieving unpleasant sensations of tickling and mitigating dryness.
• For a beginning cough, compresses are often applied to the throat. For them you can use: alcohol, castor oil, honey, cottage cheese, cabbage. An oilcloth or plastic bag is applied to the bottom layer, impregnated with the composition and in direct contact with the skin. Next, the patient’s throat is wrapped in a warm scarf or handkerchief. The compress lasts for at least several hours.
• If a cough appears suddenly (quickly), then inhalations help a lot. They are made in a saucepan or kettle, covered with a towel and inhaling steam. There are also special devices for this procedure - nebulizers. The composition of inhalations for the treatment of illness can be completely different: boiled potatoes, herbal decoction, soda solution, medicinal fillers. The cough treatment procedure lasts from 5 to 10 minutes. It needs to be done several times a day. The liquid should not be boiling, otherwise you can burn your face and respiratory mucosa.

If a cough appears for reasons unrelated to a cold, then self-treatment of the symptom will not bring any effect, and delaying visiting a doctor will aggravate the incipient illness and slow down the process of getting rid of it. Also, going to the hospital is important if emergency methods of dealing with an unpleasant phenomenon do not produce results for several days, and the condition only worsens. In these cases, only a doctor can determine how to treat an incipient cough and what to do next. He will draw up a complete clinical picture, prescribe appropriate tests and identify the cause of the unpleasant symptom. After this, the specialist will select the most adequate treatment regimen for the unpleasant symptom and the factor causing it.

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Inflammations and infections causing persistent coughing

If coughing does not go away within several weeks, one may suspect the presence of inflammatory processes, as well as infectious diseases of the upper and lower respiratory tract. The symptom often manifests itself with laryngitis and pharyngitis, tracheitis and bronchitis. It may also indicate problems with the nasopharynx, the most common of which are rhinitis, sinusitis and sinusitis.

Among the infectious diseases that cause coughing are measles and whooping cough, which are most common in children, scarlet fever, pneumonia, and pulmonary tuberculosis. This phenomenon can also occur due to lack of air during exacerbations of bronchial asthma.

Sometimes the patient coughs periodically due to diseases that have nothing to do with the respiratory organs. For example, quite often this phenomenon accompanies various disturbances in the functioning of the mitral valve, such dangerous ailments as:

• cardiosclerosis and various manifestations of cardiomyopathy;
• heart failure;
• chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (this is the name hidden under the abbreviation COPD);
• chronic pneumonia;
• benign and malignant tumors in the lungs, bronchi and other organs of the respiratory system.

Coughing also occurs if there are problems with the thyroid gland. In this case, there is always a kind of lump in the throat. In an attempt to get rid of it, the patient constantly coughs, and this process may be accompanied by the release of mucus.

To distinguish coughing during a serious illness from a physiological phenomenon, it is necessary to observe the manifestations of a number of additional symptoms:

• sudden weight loss in the absence of any changes in the usual diet;
• low-grade body temperature (37-37.5 degrees for several weeks in a row);
• constant painful state of the whole body;
• feverish blush on the cheeks or, on the contrary, unnatural pallor;
• a sharp increase in temperature to 39 degrees and above.

All these signs, coupled with constant coughing, may indicate the presence of a serious pathology, so you should immediately consult a doctor.

How to quickly cure a cough

A cough rarely occurs separately from some other, sometimes very serious, reasons. It is important to pay attention to them and provide symptomatic treatment in parallel with the cough. If you have a fever, take antipyretic and antiviral medications. If you have a runny nose, you need to dry the nasal passage; if you have a sore throat, you need to treat the nasopharynx. Eliminating all symptoms at the same time will help you cope with your cough much faster.

How to treat cough in children

Children are more likely than adults to be attacked by infections. Any disease in their fragile bodies develops very quickly, the main thing is not to miss it. When faced with cough in children, it is important to remember one rule - moisturizing the lower respiratory tract is 70% of the cure. You can moisturize in several ways:

• humidify the air;
• warm drink;
• fine inhalations.

Attention! In a house where there are children, humidifiers are a must, especially in dry or frosty climates. If you don’t have a humidifier, you need to put a bowl of water in the room and hang wet diapers.

If there is any cough, give the child something to drink during the day: teas, fruit drinks, compotes, water. Use cold inhalations for the respiratory tract every two hours with mineral water for dry coughs. For a wet cough, add sputum thinning medications three times a day: Lazolvan, Ambrobene (calculation: 5 drops per 05-0.7 ml of distilled/mineral water).

If by morning the cough is wet, you can also use expectorants:

An excellent remedy would be preparations based on marshmallow root. For a wet cough, expectorant medications are used immediately.

This is important to know! If you decide to quickly get rid of a dry cough, then using expectorants is not the right course of treatment. Expectorants will only provoke a dry cough, the child will actually start choking on it, but there will be no results. A dry cough needs to be suppressed, for this they use “Sinekod”.

An excellent remedy for coughing is dry heat on the chest and back. It will help cope with the disease, but is only applicable if the children do not have a fever. Also, under this condition, you can steam the feet, put mustard in socks, rub the child with your palm, and do a vibration massage on the back. An integrated approach will speed up the healing process.

The child’s nose and throat must be treated, otherwise the entire infection will again “slide” onto the lungs. The above-mentioned drops “Isofra” (contain an antibiotic) and “Polydex” (contain an antibiotic and a vasoconstrictor) are also good for children. The throat is irrigated with a saline solution: Inhalipt, Miramistin or Hexoral.

Fresh air will be no less useful: ventilation, walks. If your child has a dry cough in winter, do not be afraid to open the windows.

Treatment of cough in adults

The algorithm for treating cough in an adult is virtually the same as in a child, but in an enhanced mode. A dry cough must be actively moisturized: do inhalations (cold) with mineral water, humidify the room. An adult should drink at least 2.5-3 liters of liquid per day.

The most effective recipe for treating a cough in one day is heat. You need to dress as warmly as possible, be sure to wrap your head in a scarf, and do steam inhalation (recipes are given below). Then drink two cups of hot tea with honey or raspberry jam, go to bed for a couple of hours under a warm blanket. It is advisable to sleep, sleep heals. After a person has sweated well, it is necessary to restore the water-salt balance in the body; ordinary drinking water or mineral water will do for this, but not cold water. Do steam inhalation three times a day: morning, evening and afternoon. Drink teas and soak your feet during the day. At night, take a tablet “Suprastin” (relieves swelling) or “No-shpy” (relieves spasm). These medications will allow you to sleep peacefully and relax.

Attention! We treat cough according to its nature. If a person realizes that he is suffering from a dry cough, then he needs to take antitussives. If a person coughs up wetly, on the contrary, it is necessary to provoke the process with expectorant drugs. But, in both cases, drink as much fluid as possible.

Treatment of cough in pregnant women

Unfortunately, very few therapeutic agents have been invented for pregnant women. You must also be extremely careful with traditional medicine. There is only one herbal collection that has no contraindications for expectant mothers - this is “Breast collection No. 1”. But even in this case, it is advisable to consult a doctor and take 20 mg of no-shpa to relieve uterine tone. Chamomile is good for pregnant women; it soothes irritated receptors.

Attention! Remember that herbs and components of herbal preparations can have a detrimental effect on the uterus, leading to its tone; oregano is especially contraindicated. Also, expectorants can tone the uterus, as can the cough itself. And if a pregnant woman is diagnosed with gestosis, then she is contraindicated in drinking large amounts of fluid, which is so important for coughing. It is prohibited for pregnant women to apply heat to the chest, but it is possible to apply heat to the back.

The most optimal way to treat cough in pregnant women is, again, active humidification of the room, as well as:

• steam inhalations (you can add: soda and olive oil, marshmallow, chamomile, oregano, eucalyptus);
• warm drink: tea with honey, cranberry juice (tea with raspberries is contraindicated, it affects blood flow, increases heart rate, and tones);
• constant ventilation, walk;
• light vibration massage of the back.

For a dry cough, you can take Sinekod syrup at night. But it is better not to abuse expectorants.

Be sure to treat the nose and throat - these are the first centers of infection, so it is necessary to stop its spread.

Algorithm for combating infections in the nasopharynx:

• rinse with baking soda and salt;
• irrigation with Miramistin;
• rinsing the nose with saline solution.

What to do if the cough does not go away for more than a month?

If the cough has been observed for more than a month, then it is necessary to see a doctor in order to identify its cause. After an appropriate examination and in-depth examination of the patient, the doctor will prescribe appropriate treatment depending on the identified cause.

Lifestyle

In any case, the following help significantly improve your well-being:

• quitting smoking, including passive smoking,
• ensuring the necessary air humidity,
• taking enough fluids daily,
• withdrawal of ACE inhibitors,
• breathing exercises.

Fighting cough

In addition to treating the underlying disease, the symptom of which is cough, after consulting a doctor, you can use the following medications:

1. Boring dry cough:

• narcotic antitussives, for example with codeine,
• non-narcotic antitussives (prenoxdiazine, dextromethorphan, adrenergic agonists, antihistamines),
• inhalation.

2. Wet cough:

• expectorants,
• mucolytics,
• physiotherapy.

Treatment of diseases accompanied by cough

• Bronchial asthma, obstructive bronchitis - inhaled or standard hormonal therapy, antihistamines.
• Tuberculosis - long-term use of anti-tuberculosis drugs.
• Taking ACE inhibitors in connection with diseases of the cardiovascular system - replacing ACE inhibitors with angiotensin type II receptor antagonists.
• Purulent lung diseases - antibiotic therapy (amoxicillin, second generation cephalosporins, etc.).
• Bronchiectasis - antibiotic therapy, postural drainage.
• Lung cancer - surgical treatment, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
• Cystic fibrosis - dilution of viscous bronchial secretions (ambroxol, acetylcysteine, pulmozyme), expansion of the bronchial lumen (salbutamol, ventolin), fight against infection (broad-spectrum antibiotics, taking into account the sensitivity of the microflora).

Folk remedies for cough

The simplest treatment of bronchopulmonary diseases with folk remedies is herbal medicine. Pharmaceutical herbs are brewed in a water bath.

To obtain the medicine, take one tablespoon of herb per 250 ml, pour it into a glass jar with 250 ml of warm water. Place a pan of warm water on the stove, keep it over medium heat for 10 minutes, then evaporate over low heat, with the lid closed, for exactly an hour. Let it sit for a couple more hours without removing it from the pan. Then the infusion is filtered and you can feed the child according to the following scheme: 1 s/spoon three times a day.

Brew herbs such as:

• chamomile;
• thyme;
• oregano;
• elecampane;
• liquorice root;
• plantain;
• dandelion;
• wild rosemary;
• spruce buds;
• rose hip.

Attention! Be careful when treating with herbs, many of them have contraindications for those who have chronic diseases of the genitourinary system.

Radish as a natural “mustard plaster”

Black radish has been and remains a wonderful, proven home remedy for coughs, but it is contraindicated for people with stomach problems.

Peel the vegetable, grate it and, wrap it in a cloth, apply it to the back or chest of the child/adult. Cover the top with a plastic bag, then wrap it in a warm diaper. Hold for 7-10 minutes for a child, 10-15 minutes for an adult.

Radish cough syrup

Peel the vegetables, grind them, mix with honey to taste. Infuse the resulting super-fragrant gruel for three hours, then drink the resulting liquid at the rate of 1 teaspoon every three hours on the first day, every 4-5 hours on subsequent days.

Wash the radish, cut off the “spout” and use a spoon to scrape out the cavity in the vegetable. Fill the cavity with honey, leave for six hours, stir. Take the same as in the first case.

Dandelion syrup

Wash the dandelion caps (500 grams), add sugar (100 grams) and cook over low heat until they reach a honey consistency. You can drink tea with dandelion syrup or simply give it 1 teaspoon every 2 hours.

Milk with ginger

Ginger root (15 g) rinse, peel and wipe. Pour a glass of milk and heat over low heat. You can add honey to the milk for taste.

Propolis is a wonderful immunomodulatory agent. Few people know that it can also be used to treat cough. Propolis is added to hot milk/tea and given to children several times a day.

Attention! When drinking hot tea, the child is dressed as warmly as possible so that he sweats well. To avoid dehydration, you need to give your child something to drink: after each glass of tea/milk, after 15 minutes, give a third of a glass of warm water.

Oatmeal broth

Pour three tablespoons of oats into two glasses of water and simmer for 30 minutes over low heat. Leave for six hours, strain. Before you drink it yourself or give it to your child, the decoction must be heated. You can drink it two or three times a day, one glass.

Onion syrup

Peel the onion and grate it on a fine grater. Add a spoonful of honey and leave for at least three hours. Eat one spoon every two to three hours. Contraindicated for people with gastrointestinal problems.

Onion compress

Grated onion is also used as a compress/mustard plasters: put it on paper, cover it with gauze on top, hold it, wrapping a small patient for 7-10 minutes, adults can do it for 15-18 minutes.

Berries and berry leaves

Berries and foliage from berry bushes are an excellent remedy for coughs. Warm fruit drinks are made from the fruits, and the leaves are steamed as tea leaves or in a water bath at the rate of 100 grams of berries per 300 ml of water (the algorithm is described above).

Suitable for cough treatment:

• viburnum (fruit);
• strawberries, lingonberries, currants, raspberries (leaves and fruits).

Cough recipe with viburnum

Wash 100 grams of berries, crush them, add honey, grated ginger root (15 grams), chopped lemon slice, mix everything. Add to tea instead of jam.

Steam inhalations

Inhalations are good in any form, but steam inhalations should be done only in the absence of fever. As medicinal additives, you can use the above herbs, potatoes, oil and soda (1 teaspoon per liter of water). Also an excellent folk remedy would be inhalations with:

• spruce/fir branches (4-5 small branches per 1.5 liters of water);
• propolis (15 drops per 1 liter of water);
• turmeric, clover (2-3 tablespoons per 1.5 liters of water).

Wine treatment

If we are talking about an adult, then the most reliable cough remedy is warmed wine with pepper or propolis. For one glass of wine (use only fortified wine, for example, Cahors), add pepper/propolis on the tip of a knife, heat, stir.

In the bath you can use herbs, rubs, oils, and a broom. During the visit, as well as after it, be sure to drink several mugs of herbal tea, and once home, go to bed, wrapped in blankets.

Attention! At any temperature, even low-grade fever, thermal procedures cannot be performed!