Cough is a symptom that accompanies various diseases, so cough treatment means understanding the cause of its appearance. Depending on the causes and types of cough, certain methods of therapy, both medicamentous and folk, are selected, which can be effective and enhance the effect of taking drugstores.
Cough - Causes
Before taking measures to eliminate this symptom, you should find out the causes of cough. In modern medicine, there is a classification of cough, depending on its characteristics. If we talk about the causes of cough reflexes, then they are divided into:
- inflammatory and allergic;
- mechanical (when foreign bodies get inside, tumors, enlarged lymph nodes);
- Thermal (as a reaction to a decrease in temperature);
- chemical (side effects of drugs, exposure to gases and chemicals).
Viral cough
Often, viral diseases have two main symptoms: viral cough and temperature. Most of them are symptoms of influenza and ARVI, to which in the future it is also possible to attach a bacterial infection. The main contingent suffering from a viral cough is children who have not strengthened immunity, which is unable to provide adequate resistance to viruses and bacteria from outside.
Treat a viral cough in parallel with the disease itself, and do it as soon as possible. Such diseases are transmitted by airborne droplets, which means that if the patient is sick in the house, then all of its inhabitants can be infected. Another reason to proceed immediately to treatment is possible complications and the transition of a cough to a chronic form.
Bacterial cough
This type of cough is caused by the presence of pathogenic bacteria in the body, which significantly affects respiratory organs and are difficult to diagnose in the early stages due to the long incubation period. Such a cough does not pass by itself, so in the vast majority of cases prescribe antibiotic therapy. Treatment for a cough caused by bacteria should be started only after contacting a doctor. The main pathogens of diseases accompanied by a bacterial cough are called:
- streptococci;
- causative agents of pertussis;
- pneumococci ;
- chlamydia.
Allergic cough in adults
This symptom appears when you get on the mucous allergens. Often this kind of cough is taken for a symptom of respiratory disease and mistakenly prescribed ineffective treatment. It is very difficult to recognize the cause and understand that barking cough is an allergic reaction , so when you first manifest such a symptom you should consult a specialist. After the successful detection of an allergen that provoked a cough reflex, it is possible to limit the effect of the stimulus and prescribe antihistamines:
- Diazoline;
- Tavegil;
- Suprastin;
- Cetirizine;
- Desloratadine;
- Rupafin.
Cardiac cough
This kind of cough appears on the background of heart failure, arrhythmia and other problems with the cardiovascular system. This symptom signals the presence of serious diseases, the treatment of which should be resorted to immediately. This cough is observed at night, which interferes with proper rest and during wakefulness. The main symptoms of heart cough are:
- dyspnea;
- rapid and shortness of breath;
- general malaise against a cough;
- chest pains of a traumatic nature.
Cough smoker
Everyone is well aware of the dangers of smoking and its consequences, one of which is a cough in the morning. Because of the large accumulation of harmful substances that have settled on the walls of the pulmonary alveoli, the body tries to cure the accumulated carcinogens by means of a cough. The main signs of a smoker's cough are:
- cough without fever, shortness of breath;
- when coughing, a large amount of mucus is released;
- a fit of coughing while inhaling deeply;
- morning cough;
- dyspnoea with physical exertion.
Types of cough and their treatment
Depending on the types of cough and the nature of its occurrence, a method of treatment is prescribed. Self-medication and indiscriminate use of funds for coughing can only do much harm. For example, if there is a wet cough, taking antitussive drugs will make it more difficult to withdraw the sputum and provoke complications, significantly increasing the time of treatment and recovery. If the cause of the cough is a bacterium, then taking antiviral drugs will simply be useless.
Types of cough dry and wet:
- Dry. This kind of cough is not accompanied by the withdrawal of mucus and sputum. It can be observed in the first stages of acute respiratory infections, heart disease and problems in the CNS.
- Wet cough. Accompanied by active expectoration with sputum discharge and is a symptom of respiratory diseases.
In terms of duration, the cough is divided into periodic and permanent:
- The permanent has a character in which a fit of coughing does not give a sigh, and can have the most dangerous consequences: from vomiting to stopping breathing.
- Periodic cough - single shocks, without convulsive convulsions.
There are also acute and chronic cough:
- Acute. This species is not prolonged and is mainly a symptom of ARI or ARVI .
- Chronic. This kind lasts a long time (more than 3 months) and speaks about the presence of chronic diseases in a person.
Drugs for dry cough
Unproductive cough is very painful and painful, which often leads to loss of sleep and appetite. For its treatment, antitussive or mixed-agent preparations are prescribed:
- Herbion;
- Sinecod;
- Stoptussin ;
- Linkas;
- Alex Plus;
- Bronchicum;
- Tercodin.
Folk remedies for dry cough
Traditional medicine has in its arsenal a lot of recipes that help cope with the disease with the help of natural remedies. Before treating a cough with non-traditional methods, you should always consult with your doctor to avoid undesirable consequences or conduct inappropriate therapy that is powerless and useless.
Milk and honey from cough
Ingredients:
- milk - 200 g;
- honey 1-2 tsp;
- food soda - a quarter teaspoonful;
- butter - a teaspoon.
Preparation and use
- Milk warm and add honey, allowing it to completely dissolve.
- Add soda and oil and mix thoroughly.
- Drink small sips several times a day until relief.
Recipe for cough with radish and honey
Ingredients:
- radish - 1 piece;
- honey.
Preparation and use
- Radish is washed, peeled and made in it a cavity, carving the flesh.
- In the indentation lay honey and leave in a warm place until the juice is extracted from the radish.
- Juice is consumed on a teaspoon every few hours.
Multicomponent tea from cough
Ingredients:
- lemon - lobule;
- honey - to taste;
- raspberry (fresh or in the form of jam) - to taste.
Preparation and use
- In a glass of boiling water mix all the ingredients and give a little cool.
- They drink tea several times a day, before a productive cough.
Thymus infusion
Ingredients:
- water - 200 ml .;
- thyme 10 g.
Preparation and use
- Insist the grass on the water bath for a quarter of an hour.
- Take before meals on a tablespoon.
The medicine for a wet cough
Cough treatment, in which active mucus is observed, is produced using expectorants and mucolytics. It is very important to understand the nature of this cough and what processes occur in the body and do not try to get rid of the symptom by means that suppress the cough reflex and aggravate the situation. Cough with phlegm - the work of the purifying function of the respiratory system, which is unsafe to interfere.
Means and tablets from a wet cough:
- Mukobene;
- Bronhosan;
- Mukaltin ;
- Pectusin;
- Solutan;
- Flavamed;
- Rinicold Bronho;
- Bronchophyte.
Folk remedies for wet cough
Traditional methods of treatment of wet cough are simple, not requiring the presence of exotic ingredients, so they are often used because of the availability and effectiveness. Before treating cough with folk remedies, it is necessary to coordinate the chosen remedies with the attending physician and get his approval for such therapeutic methods.
Honey with lemon juice
Ingredients:
- honey - 5 teaspoons;
- juice of one lemon.
Preparation and use
- Mix the ingredients until smooth.
- Take small portions throughout the day.
Syrup from dill and honey seed
Ingredients:
- seeds of dill - 1 tbsp. l .;
- honey - 1-2 spoons.
Preparation and use
- Seeds boil for a quarter of an hour.
- Strain and mix with honey.
- Drink 2/3 cup several times a day.
Onions and sugar with wet cough
Ingredients:
- bulb of medium size;
- sugar.
Preparation and use
- Grind the onion.
- Add sugar to the onions, stirring constantly until it dissolves until a syrup of thick consistency is formed.
- Take a dessert spoon in the morning, afternoon and evening.
Decoction of herbs with a damp cough
Ingredients:
- mother-and-stepmother - 2 parts;
- chamomile (flowers) - 2 parts;
- oregano - 1 part.
Preparation and use
- Mix the ingredients and take from the obtained raw materials two st. spoons.
- Put in a thermos and pour a glass of boiling water. Leave for 7-8 hours.
- Strain and drink before eating half the glass.
At what cough do inhalations?
Cough inhalations have proved to be good, but before carrying out such manipulations it is necessary to find out in which cases such procedures are shown, and when prohibited. As we have already explained, cough can be dry and wet - both of these options involve cough treatment with inhalation, but with strict condition of contra-indications.
It is forbidden to carry out inhalations with:
- temperature more than 37,5;
- tendency to bleeding;
- intolerance of substances included in the composition of inhalation mixtures;
- the presence of severe respiratory diseases (emphysema, pneumothorax, respiratory failure of the third degree);
- serious problems with the heart and blood vessels (hypertension, heart attack, stroke, atherosclerosis).
How to relieve a fit of cough?
This symptom delivers a lot of trouble, especially if it has a paroxysmal character. A strong cough prevents sleep at night, reduces appetite, is accompanied by headaches and a general malaise. Drug therapy is designed for a course of treatment, so it is ineffective for rapid relief of an attack.
Simple, affordable and effective ways come to the rescue:
- Drink warm milk with butter.
- Grass of sage (tablespoon), boil in milk (200-250 g) and take a glass in a hot form. This remedy is especially effective at night attacks.
- Grate your back and chest with the juice of a black radish.
- Chew on the leaf of the plant.
- Take a mixture of water, burnt sugar and aloe (spoon sugar in a fermenter, add 50 g of water and add aloe juice, if any).