Dry Cough Defination
Coughing is a defensive reflex activity that occurs when the human body clears secretions and foreign bodies from the respiratory tract or when the respiratory mucosa is irritated. Coughing without sputum or with very little sputum is called a dry cough.
Different Kinds of Dry Cough
If it is a paroxysmal dry cough, accompanied by itchy throat, no fever, symptoms are obvious after encountering cold air or irritating odors, and antibiotic treatment is ineffective, and the condition worsens at night or in the morning.
if there is no abnormality in CT or X-ray examination, it is likely to be an allergic cough, also known as cough variant asthma or allergic bronchitis.
If the dry cough is accompanied by symptoms of allergic rhinitis such as sneezing, runny nose and nasal congestion, it may be an allergic cough caused by allergic rhinitis, also known as allergic rhinitis.
Symptoms of lung cancer
If it is a long-term dry cough, and it does not match the above three diseases, then be alert to lung cancer. Cough is the most common early symptom of lung cancer.
The main feature is paroxysmal irritating coughing, with a feeling of incomplete coughing. Such patients have no sputum or only a small amount of white foamy sputum, and secondary infection produces purulent sputum.
If there is no improvement after 2 weeks of anti-infection treatment, be alert to the possibility of lung cancer. In addition, the patient’s voice is sometimes hoarse, which is very common in lung cancer patients.
People who have no chronic respiratory diseases in the past, especially those over 40 years old, should be alert to the possibility of lung cancer if the cough lasts for more than three weeks after treatment without obvious improvement.
Further examination should be done, and lung CT is recommended to help detect early lung cancer. Early detection and early treatment are crucial for lung cancer patients.