What is dry cough? Causes and symptoms of the disease

Dry cough is a very common condition and is found in many different subjects from children to the elderly. Basically, if you only have a dry cough, do not last long and have no other symptoms, it will not affect your health much, but in the long term it will have an impact on your life, and if your cough is dry If the disease persists for a long time, the patient needs a medical examination. Let's find out how dry cough manifests and what causes dry cough in the following article.

Dry cough and manifestations

A dry cough is a cough that does not produce sputum or mucus , has an acute or usually dry cough for 1-2 weeks and a chronic dry cough for more than 4 weeks. A dry cough has many different symptoms and symptoms, such as soreness or itchiness in the throat, some people last longer or to get worse, which can affect swallowing saliva, food, difficulty breathing or wheezing. whiff.

Although a dry cough is not life-threatening, but only in the absence of frequent, prolonged coughing, there are no other symptoms. If the condition for a long time can lead to exhaustion, nausea, chest pain due to coughing many times, loss of voice, .

The cause of a dry cough

A dry cough can be caused by a variety of causes, both internal and external.

1. Asthma : Dry cough is one of the main recognizable symptoms of asthma. In addition, the infected person has other symptoms such as chest pain, difficulty sleeping, difficulty breathing or wheezing, etc.
2. Gastroesophageal reflux disease : A dry cough occurs when gastroesophageal reflux causes a dry cough. Other symptoms include chest pain, heartburn, difficulty swallowing or chronic sore throat, etc.
3. Postnasal drip: Postnasal drip is when bacteria containing mucus flows down the palate, causing inflammation and irritation of nerves in the back of the throat, resulting in a dry cough.
4. Viral infection : The common cold caused by a viral infection usually lasts less than a week. But cough symptoms can last for at least 2 months even after the cold has stopped.

Dry cough is also caused by other less pathogenic agents, such as:

1. Environmental effects : A dry cough may be caused by inhalation of airway irritants contained in polluted environments such as mold, smog or pollen or chemical particles that exist in the air, resulting in nitric oxide or sulfur dioxide. In addition, the air is too dry or too cold, which irritates the mucosa of the throat leading to a dry cough.
2. Side effects of ACE inhibitors : Using some ACE inhibitors can cause dry cough side effects such as Lisinopril (Prinivil and Zestril) and Enalapril (Vasotec).
3. Whooping cough : A dry cough is a typical recognizable symptom of pertussis. Other signs include a high fever, heavy eyelids or exhalation that sounds like a chicken neck.
4. Lung cancer : Dry cough is often associated with lung cancer. Pneumothorax: The disease may occur on its own or react to a chest injury. Pulmonary emphysema is common in subjects with underlying lung disease. In addition to a dry cough, the disease also causes chest tightness and shortness of breath
5. Heart failure : It occurs when the heart muscle does not pump blood normally. Heart failure is common in people with high blood pressure or coronary artery disease. A persistent dry cough is one of the typical symptoms of this disease.

A dry cough can be a manifestation of many illnesses, so when we have an abnormal dry cough we need to go to a medical facility for a thorough examination by a doctor.