Cough with sore throat: does it happen or not, how should it be treated?

The main clinical sign of inflammation in the throat is pain, which intensifies when swallowing. If a cough appears with a sore throat (acute tonsillitis), it means that the infection has descended lower - into the pharynx, larynx, trachea, or even the bronchi with the development of an active inflammatory process. It is important to detect dangerous symptoms in time and consult a doctor.

Cause of cough due to tonsillitis

Cough is not a symptom of sore throat, but occurs as a consequence of improper or insufficient treatment of the disease. Pathogens that cause damage to the tonsils descend into the respiratory tract. Immune defense during tonsillitis weakens, so nothing prevents the progression of the infectious process. Tracheitis, bronchitis, and laryngitis occur, which are manifested by a cough.

Symptoms

Cough with tonsillitis is a serious symptom, the nature and duration of which depend on the location of the pathological process. The following clinical manifestations accompanying angina are possible:

• A dry, debilitating cough with a feeling of a foreign body in the throat, soreness and itching is characteristic of pharyngitis. The symptoms of intoxication are weakly expressed.
• With inflammation of the larynx, the clinical picture of the disease is specific. Against the background of classic symptoms of tonsillitis, hoarseness or loss of voice occurs. A rough or “barking” cough is typical, initially dry and then producing mucus. In children, this condition is dangerous with the risk of developing laryngospasm, which requires immediate medical attention.
• With tracheitis, the cough appears at night or in the morning, its character is paroxysmal, accompanied by pain behind the sternum.
• When the inflammatory process affects the bronchi, the cough at the beginning of the disease is dry, suffocating, then changes to wet. Concomitant symptoms are pronounced signs of intoxication - high body temperature, chills, sweating, weakness.

In children, the cause of a dry cough that occurs with a sore throat is acute rhinitis. Mucus accumulates in the throat, and the child may not yet be able to clear the nasal passages (blow his nose) on his own. The discharge flows into the respiratory tract, irritating the receptors, which provokes coughing.

Medication assistance

It is imperative to visit a doctor if a child develops a cough due to a sore throat. What to treat will become clear after determining the nature of the pathogenic microorganisms that have affected the mucous membrane. Fungi are removed with some drugs, viral infections with others.

They try not to take antibiotics unless the complication is severe. However, they are prescribed to small children; their immunity is still too weak to destroy the bacteria on their own. Doctors take into account the compatibility of drugs for sore throat and cough. You should not choose a medicine without recommendations.

To destroy microbes in the body, penicillins and azithromycins are prescribed. If the cough has already started, you will still have to take strong medications. Additionally, gargling and taking vitamins are used.

The danger of coughing during a sore throat

Tonsillitis is not only pain and discomfort in the throat. The disease has insidious complications and can harm vital organs. The occurrence of a cough indicates the progression of the inflammatory process and is a good reason to visit a doctor.

Table - 1 Consequences of sore throat

More often, complications arise against the background of relapse of chronic tonsillitis. However, acutely developing purulent tonsillitis can also quickly cause serious consequences for human health.

Features of therapy

The treatment of tonsillitis should be taken seriously. When any cough occurs with a sore throat, therapy should be aimed at eliminating the cause and clinical symptoms of the pathology.

Gargling is an important principle of treatment. The procedure is carried out every 30–40 minutes with warm solutions of herbs or medications. Effective rinses:

• Chlorophyllipt,
• Furacilin solution,
• Iodinol,
• Lugol,
• Miramistin.

It is important to create a therapeutic and protective regime for a person. To do this, ensure a favorable microclimate in the home: it is important to carry out cleaning, ventilation and humidification three times a day. It is necessary to strive to ensure that there is no sudden temperature change in the room, optimally 24–25 °C.

Bed rest is necessary until the fever subsides. Nutrition should be complete in terms of vitamins, microelements and protein, as well as mechanically and thermally gentle. A person is recommended to drink plenty of warm drinks in small sips.

During the acute period of illness, you should categorically refuse physical activity and other types of work.

Drug treatment

Drugs are prescribed taking into account the etiology, pathogenesis and clinical picture of the disease. In case of bacterial nature of sore throat and accompanying cough, treatment with antibiotics is mandatory.

For children

For children, medications are prescribed based on age or body weight.

Table - 2 Etiotropic drug therapy for cough with sore throat in children

Symptomatic and pathogenetic therapy for sore throat in children should include the use of cough syrup. Pharmaceutical companies offer a wide selection of herbal products:

• for dry cough use - Linkas, Gedelix, Doctor Mom, Lazolvan, Askoril;
• Bromhexine, Equabal, Fluditec, Tussamag are used to treat the wet form.

You need to fight the temperature with the help of antipyretics. In children under 2-3 years of age, it is advisable to use rectal suppositories (Cefekon, Efferalgan, Panadol); in older children, they switch to the use of syrups - Ibuprofen, Ibufen D, Nurofen.

Children under two years of age are not recommended to irrigate their throats with antiseptic sprays. The child cannot hold his breath. Substances can enter the respiratory tract and cause a burn or sharp spasm of the larynx. Pediatricians advise applying the medicine to a pacifier or to the inner surface of the cheek. It is possible to wrap your index finger with sterile gauze and lubricate the palatine arches and tonsils with the product.

Antiseptics allowed for children under one year of age - Septomirin, Chlorhexidine, Aqualor.

For adults

Depending on the infection that caused the sore throat, appropriate etiotropic therapy is prescribed.

Antiviral drugs used in adults: Kipferon, Tamiflu, Tsitovir, Kagocel.

The list of antimicrobial medications is varied; they are prescribed based on the sensitivity of the pathogen. The most common medications:

• Augmentin,
• Flemoxin,
• Sumamed,
• Zinnat,
• Cefamandole,
• Tienam.

To eliminate cough symptoms and facilitate sputum discharge, expectorants (Bromhexine, Ambrohexal) and antitussives (Glauvent, Sinekod) are used.

For a sore throat, lozenges that have anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties will help - Adjisept, Septolete Plus, Grammidin, Tantum Verde.

At temperatures above 38.5 °C, the prescription of antipyretic drugs is indicated - Ibuprofen, Paracetamol, Aspirin.

Pregnant and lactating

During the period of bearing and breastfeeding a baby, the list of medications approved for use is sharply reduced. In the first trimester, almost all medications are prohibited; when prescribing them, the attending physician carefully compares the risk for mother and baby.

Table - 3 Pharmacological agents approved for use during pregnancy and breastfeeding

During pregnancy and lactation, only a gynecologist or therapist should prescribe medications. Self-medication can lead to serious consequences for the child and mother.

Traditional methods

There are many unconventional ways to combat cough with sore throat. Some of them:

• Recipe No. 1. Take a medium-sized lemon and boil for 10 minutes, then squeeze the juice into a bowl, add 2 tablespoons of glycerin and a teaspoon of honey. The resulting liquid should be divided into three doses and consumed before meals.
• Recipe No. 2. Pour 10 g of sugar into half a liter of heated unfiltered beer and mix. It is recommended to drink 5–100 ml three times a day.

Physiotherapy

It is possible to influence the area of ​​the pathological focus with physical factors 3–4 days after the onset of the disease. To treat cough with sore throat, it is advisable to use UHF, UV irradiation, electrophoresis, laser therapy and mud therapy.

Inhalations and compresses for coughs

Moisturizing the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract helps thin and evacuate mucus, which speeds up recovery.

The liquid used to fill the inhaler is saline solution, Essentuki or Borjomi mineral water, antiseptics (Furacilin, Chlorhexidine), ACC and others.

It is recommended to breathe 3-4 times a day until clinical signs disappear.

Warming compresses when coughing on the chest and neck area have a distracting effect, improve sputum discharge, after which the person feels better. A proven method is mashed boiled potatoes wrapped in thick cloth. It should be applied to the chest or collar area in the evening before bed.

Additional treatments

To reduce pain, burning and sore throat, as well as to provide a soothing and anti-inflammatory effect, the doctor prescribes the following lozenges:

• Lysobacter;
• Strepsils;
• Septolete.

No less effective in the fight against cough are drugs for irrigating the throat: Stopangin, Hexoral, Theraflu Lar, which have a similar effect to absorbable lozenges.

At the same time, you can gargle with the following pharmaceutical preparations:

• Miramistin;
• Hexoral;
• Yodonol.

Syrups are prescribed to thin mucus and remove it quickly. Such preparations contain herbal components that are useful in the treatment of laryngitis and inflammation of the lower respiratory tract accompanying sore throat (Mukaltin, Lazolvan, Doctor Mom).

It is worth remembering that the duration of treatment and dosage should only be determined by the attending physician, since self-prescription of medications can only aggravate the condition.