Nature and treatment of dry cough in adults

An effective treatment for dry cough in adults is selected individually in each case. Bronchospasm can be caused by various reasons, most often it is a protective reaction of the body, which helps to remove foreign bodies and phlegm from the respiratory tract. However, a violation can occur against the background of serious ailments, in which it is necessary to provide the patient with qualified assistance as soon as possible.

Reasons for violation

An unproductive dry cough in adults can be triggered by viral and infectious diseases, a common cold. In this case, irritation of the mucous membranes of the larynx and bronchi is observed. Airway spasm without phlegm occurs because the mucus is too thick. A dry, unproductive cough does not offer any relief. However, there are other, more serious reasons that cause bronchospasm:

Allergy. An allergic cough provokes a spasm of the muscle tissue, not the mucous membrane. This tissue is a component of the bronchial wall and is irritated by allergens. Most often, the patient with this disease is tormented by cough, tearing, runny nose.
Congestion of blood in the lungs. Violation of the pumping functions of the heart can provoke a painful cough, which is called "heart". Most often, bronchospasm occurs at night. When the patient takes a horizontal position, congestion occurs in the pulmonary vessels. You can get rid of such a cough only with the help of complex therapy.
Oncology. A strong dry cough in an adult often occurs against the background of cancer. Tumor masses can block the bronchi and cause problems with the passage of air. In addition, virtually all neoplasms release chemicals into the bloodstream that cause bronchospasm.
Drug reaction. Official medicine is often faced with cases where coughing begins to torment patients taking drugs to reduce blood pressure. Inhibitors given for hypertension can irritate the airways.
Psycho-emotional stress. A biting, allergic cough-like cough can be caused by psychological distress. This condition often causes a violation of the nervous regulation of bronchial patency.
Hypothermia. In the early stages of pneumonia, a cough can literally tear apart the chest, but the phlegm does not come out.
Smoking. Heavy smokers often suffer from a dry cough, which often appears at night in the form of severe attacks. It indicates the development of chronic bronchitis.
Tuberculosis. If a dry cough is observed constantly, accompanied by an increase in body temperature in the evening, sweating and general malaise, bronchospasm may be a symptom of a serious infectious disease provoked by Koch's bacillus.
Helminths. Before you begin to treat a severe dry cough, you need to make sure that the patient does not have worms. Helminths, like bacteria, can infect the lungs, especially ascaris.
Gastroesophageal reflux. This is a digestive disorder that can cause a tearing cough. It occurs due to the ingestion of gastric contents into the respiratory tract. This phenomenon occurs for two reasons: insufficient muscle pulp, increased secretion of hydrochloric acid.

Choice of therapy

To understand how to treat a dry cough, you need to see a specialist. Only by conducting a detailed examination and passing tests can the correct diagnosis be made. In each case, the doctor individually determines what kind of help will be most effective. To treat a severe dry cough, the following therapy can be used:

Type of therapy	Peculiarities
Antibacterial	It is prescribed in case of an increase in body temperature with a dry cough and a change in the leukocyte blood count.
Antiviral	It helps to relieve the symptoms of the disease and destroy pathogenic organisms, but only if the medication is started in the first 3 days of the illness, then their use will be ineffective.
Inhalation	It is prescribed when the patient is tortured by a dry cough, which manifests itself in seizures and disrupts normal physical activity or night rest.
Antineoplastic	Determined during a biopsy, 3 specialists should form the correct treatment schedule: an oncologist, a chemotherapist and a thoracic surgeon.
Anthelminthic	If a dry cough is caused by the presence of parasites in the body, all family members must undergo a course of treatment, for this special pills are prescribed.
Blocking the proton pump and antacids	This therapy is used if you need to quickly cure a dry cough provoked by a dysfunction of the stomach.
Antihistamine	Allergic cough is treated with special agents that block the formation of biologically active substances, such as serotonin, bradykinin, histamine, etc.
Suppression of cough reflexes	If you need to quickly eliminate a dry cough, then the best are the means that regulate the work of the brain center, which is responsible for the cough reflex.

General list of drugs:

"Lazolvan", "Bromhexin", "Ambroxol", "ACC" - mucolytics, cut phlegm and remove it from the bronchi;
Amoxicillin, Ceftriaxone, Azithromycin, Clarithromycin - antibiotics;
Oxeladin is an antitussive drug;
"Suprastin", "Tavegil", "Diazolin" - regulators of brain centers, help to cure allergic cough;
"Terpinkod", "Linax", "Codelac broncho" - means that regulate the receptors of the lining epithelium of the respiratory tract, eliminate allergic cough.

Important! If you are haunted by a dry cough both at night and during the day, in no case should you simultaneously take drugs of such groups as expectorants and antitussives. This will not help speed up recovery, but, on the contrary, will cause complications in the form of bronchial obstruction with sputum.

General principles of treatment

Patients who do not know how to cure a dry cough need to follow the general recommendations for eliminating respiratory dysfunction along with the use of medications. The following simple rules will help to improve the patient's condition and have a softening effect:

To give up smoking. Treatment of dry, tearful cough in an adult involves the elimination of external irritants, in particular tobacco smoke. Smoking can tear in the throat, it also causes a spasm, which significantly worsens the patient's condition.
Air humidification. Patients often do not know what to do if they have a dry cough with thick mucus. Raising the humidity in the room to 70% will help thin out phlegm and make it more productive to cough up.
Drink plenty of fluids. Warm water, teas and medicinal infusions help to increase the volume of mucus and remove it from the respiratory tract. Also, drinks will help relieve irritation of the mucous membrane if the throat is sore.
The use of lollipops. If you don't know how to stop a dry cough, lozenges come to the rescue. It is desirable that they be made on a natural basis.

The absorption of lozenges stimulates the work of the glands, which has a good effect on the dilution of sputum. Also, lozenges will help to quickly get rid of severe attacks.

Folk remedies

If the patient does not know how to get rid of a dry cough, combined treatment with medications and folk remedies may be useful to him.There are many useful recipes that help both relieve the symptoms of the disease and speed up recovery. Let's consider the most effective ones.

Honey with milk. The excellent antiseptic and antibacterial properties of honey have been known to mankind for a long time. A mixture of honey and warm milk promotes the rapid elimination of infectious diseases and helps to get rid of a strong cough. Preparing a drink is very simple: you need to take a glass of boiled warm milk and dissolve a teaspoon of honey in it. We treat the spasm with the indicated remedy according to the following scheme: we take the mixture 3 times a day before meals.
Butter with milk. Butter will help soften dry cough, it coats the mucous membranes and eliminates pain, relieves spasms. Warm milk warms and soothes mucous membranes, the combination of these products gives excellent results. To prepare a remedy, take a glass of warm boiled milk and add 20-50 g of high-fat butter to it, drink 2-3 times a day.
Figs with milk. For those who do not know how to relieve a dry cough, the following recipe is suitable. To prepare the medicine, we need 3-4 ripe fruits and a glass of unpasteurized milk. Fill the figs with liquid and cook over low heat, then filter the broth, squeeze the juice of the berries into it. We take the finished drink every day before going to bed for a week. It will help both soften the mucous membrane and relieve the spasm.
Honey and butter. For patients who do not know how to treat a severe dry cough that torments at night, a healing mixture of butter and liquid honey is perfect. To prepare a medicine, you need to take the ingredients in equal proportions and mix them thoroughly. Apply the remedy 3 times a day before meals, a single serving is 1 tablespoon.
Inhalation. Treatment of unproductive cough with inhalation is widely practiced in Ayurveda. To prepare a healing mixture for inhalation, you need to add a couple of drops of clove oil, sage, thyme, lavender or other medicinal plants to hot water or a special inhaler. These ingredients will help soothe a dry cough and soothe a spasm. After the procedure, the face should be wrapped in a scarf to keep it warm longer. In case of bronchial asthma, inhalation is strictly prohibited.
Rubbing with fat. Patients interested in how to quickly cure a dry, unproductive cough should be aware of the effectiveness of massage with animal fat. We take melted lard of a bear, badger, goat, raccoon or cow. We heat it in a water bath until plastic and rub it into the patient's chest and back with massage movements. After this, the patient should be dressed in warm underwear and covered with a blanket; it is best to carry out such procedures at night.

Precautionary measures

To understand how to properly treat a dry cough, you should definitely see a doctor. The use of any drugs and procedures, traditional medicine should be agreed with a specialist, since in the case of an incorrect selection of therapy, serious complications are possible.

In no case should the dosage of medications be exceeded or the treatment should be prolonged on its own initiative. Even natural products can cause negative reactions if used for too long. Also pay attention to the composition of the preparations, they should not contain substances that cause you allergies.

Pregnant women, nursing mothers and the elderly are prescribed treatment with extreme caution. Even the most harmless components of drugs can cause inadequate response in such patients. Before starting therapy, you should make a drug test for allergies.

Let's summarize

A dry, unproductive cough can indicate various disorders in the body. Some of them are quite simple to treat, while others require serious and long-term therapy. Formal and alternative medicine offers a variety of techniques to help patients feel better. A qualified doctor will help you choose the most suitable medicines. Get treatment from specialists and take care of your health!