Kris B., a travel agent and mother of three, first noticed her persistent cough when her parents moved near her after being away for several years. “I remember their comments. They’d say, ‘You really cough a lot,’ and ‘You’re coughing again.’” Kris’ coughing bouts happened so frequently that she stopped noticing them. “My cough just became a part of who I was,” she recalls. However, Kris decided she needed to mention her persistent cough to her doctor, who eventually diagnosed her with chronic cough.
For most people, coughing is normally a reflex the body uses to protect the airway when it’s irritated by excessive mucus, harmful irritants or other substances we breathe in. In some people, that reflex may become disordered, leading to a persistent cough that can impact their health-related quality of life. The condition is defined as chronic cough when the cough lasts longer than eight weeks. Approximately 5 percent of adults in the United States live with chronic cough. People with this condition often cough in “bouts” they cannot control and usually feel a strong urge to cough before a coughing bout starts. Chronic cough can affect both men and women, but the typical person affected is a woman in her 50s.
People with chronic cough may see several health care providers before they receive a diagnosis. Typically, a person starts with a primary care provider who will take a complete medical history and perform a physical exam. If the provider is unable to determine the cause of the cough, they will likely refer the person to a specialist, such as a pulmonologist, allergist, ear, nose and throat specialist or gastroenterologist. The specialist will typically perform additional tests, such as chest x-rays or throat swabs.
Chronic cough is commonly associated with other health conditions, such as asthma, gastroesophageal reflux disease, upper airway cough syndrome or non-asthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis. Additional testing may help determine whether a person’s cough is associated with these other health conditions. However, in some people with chronic cough, appropriately treating the underlying condition may not resolve the cough, or an underlying condition cannot be identified despite thorough investigation. In these people, chronic cough is characterized as refractory or unexplained chronic cough. Refractory chronic cough is a cough that may be related to other health conditions that doesn’t go away after appropriate treatment, while unexplained chronic cough is a cough not associated with other health conditions despite thorough investigation.
For those who have a persistent cough, CoughTracker is an easy-to-use, healthy living app that can help track and record the number of times you cough, which may help you have a productive conversation with your health care provider. When used daily, it can provide you with details about your cough patterns and uncover triggers of your cough that you might not have noticed before. You can download CoughTracker from the app store on your phone. CoughTracker, powered by Hyfe with funding and support by Merck, should not be used to diagnose or treat any health conditions.
To download CoughTracker and learn more about chronic cough, visit The Cough Chronicles. This educational resource is sponsored by Merck in collaboration with the American Lung Association, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, and the Allergy & Asthma Network to support people living with chronic cough.
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Chronic Cough Symptoms and Diagnosis. American Lung Association. 2022.
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