question: Why do you get a lingering cough after catching a cold? What causes this lingering cough?
comment: Depends on the type of cough. Sometimes what sounds like a wet chesty cough is actually mucus from your sinuses draining down your throat. Called a ‘Post Nasal Drip’ and the cough is a reaction trying to prevent it entering your lungs. Using a sinus rinse can help to clear your mucus and reduce such a cough. If it’s actually a chest cough, you may hav a lingering chest infection. The mucus that the body produces to help remove the waste from fighting a virus, can create an environment for your normal bacteria to grow excessively. This can be a cyclical problem in some people. Anti biotics may help this, though have no effect on viruses.
passages: After a respiratory tract infection has cleared, the person may be left with a postinfectious cough. This typically is a dry, non-productive cough that produces no phlegm. Symptoms may include a tightness in the chest, and a tickle in the throat. This cough may often persist for weeks after an illness. The cause of the cough may be inflammation similar to that observed in repetitive stress disorders such as carpal tunnel syndrome. The repetition of coughing produces inflammation which produces discomfort, which in turn produces more coughing. Postinfectious cough typically does not respond to conventional cough treatments. Treatment consists of any anti-inflammatory medicine (such as ipratropium) to treat the inflammation, and a cough suppressant to reduce frequency of the cough until inflammation clears. Inflammation may increase sensitivity to other existing issues such as allergies, and treatment of other causes of coughs (such as use of an air purifier or allergy medicines) may help speed recovery. A bronchodilator, which helps open up the airways, may also help treat this type of cough.
   Post-viral cough
  
  A post-viral cough is a lingering cough that follows a viral respiratory tract infection, such as a common cold or flu and lasting up to eight weeks. Post-viral cough is a clinically recognized condition represented within the European medical literature. Patients usually experience repeated episodes of post-viral cough. The heightened sensitivity in the respiratory tract is demonstrated by inhalation cough challenge.
  
  Section::::Cause.
   BULLET::::- Postnasal drip, when excess mucus is produced in the sinus of the nose and drips back towards the throat, causing a cough reflex also known as upper airway cough syndrome. Postnasal drip can be caused by direct irritation of the post nasal drip or an inflammation of cough receptors in the upper airway. 34% of postnasal drip cases contribute to the cause of chronic cough.
  
  BULLET::::- Asthma that affects the upper respiratory tract. Other causes such as cold air or chemicals breathed in can also induce coughing.
   A cough can be the result of a respiratory tract infection such as the common cold, acute bronchitis, pneumonia, pertussis, or tuberculosis. In the vast majority of cases, acute coughs, i.e. coughs shorter than 3 weeks, are due to the common cold. In people with a normal chest X-ray, tuberculosis is a rare finding. Pertussis is increasingly being recognised as a cause of troublesome coughing in adults.
   People with pertussis are infectious from the beginning of the catarrhal stage (a runny nose, sneezing, low-grade fever, symptoms of the common cold) through the third week after the onset of paroxysms (multiple, rapid coughs) or until 5 days after the start of effective antimicrobial treatment.
  
  Effective treatments of the cough associated with this condition have not been developed.
  
  Section::::Prognosis.
   BULLET::::- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), a common condition where the backflow of stomach acid between the throat and the stomach causes an irritation that can lead to chronic cough.
  
  BULLET::::- Infections such as symptoms of pneumonia, flu, cold, or other infections in the upper respiratory tract include coughing that can persists even after the infection has subsided. It is commonly mistaken as a symptom of the infection can be chronic cough, known as whooping cough.
   Section::::Signs and symptoms.
  
  Common symptoms present in chronic cough include a runny or stuffy nose, a feeling of liquid running down the back of the throat (postnasal drip), frequent throat clearing (coughing) and sore throat, hoarseness, wheezing or shortness of breath, heartburn or sour taste in a person's mouth, and in rare cases coughing blood.
  
  Section::::Signs and symptoms.:Complications.
   Once inside the lungs, bacteria then take advantage of any deficiencies in the immune system (such as due to malnutrition or chemotherapy) and multiply. Patients with VAP demonstrate impaired function of key immune cells, including the neutrophil, both in the blood and in the alveolar space, with this impairment being driven by pro-inflammatory molecules such as C5a. These defects in immune function appear to be casually linked to the development of VAP, as they are seen before clinical infection develops. A combination of bacterial damage and consequences of the immune response lead to disruption of gas exchange with resulting symptoms.
   Frequent coughing usually indicates the presence of a disease. Many viruses and bacteria benefit, from an evolutionary perspective, by causing the host to cough, which helps to spread the disease to new hosts. Most of the time, irregular coughing is caused by a respiratory tract infection but can also be triggered by choking, smoking, air pollution, asthma, gastroesophageal reflux disease, post-nasal drip, chronic bronchitis, lung tumors, heart failure and medications such as ACE inhibitors.
   BULLET::::- Upper airway cough syndrome treatments include avoiding environmental irritants (chemicals) and offending antigens. This involves treating the sinus with antibiotics to stop nasal drip. Individuals should avoid decongestants found in off the shelf pharmacies to allow rhinitis medicamentosa to work. In severe cases where the cause is not clear, patients should use empiric therapy which is a combination of antihistamine and decongestants. Results typically show within 2 weeks of therapy but can take up to several months for results to show. Absence of standard clinical procedure that test for rhinorrhoea and excess sputum production should not preclude an empiric trial with antihistamine decongestants as they are not effective in treating upper airway cough syndrome.
   Chronic cough is long-term coughing, sometimes defined as more than several weeks or months. The term can be used to describe the different causes related to coughing, the 3 main ones being; upper airway cough syndrome, asthma and gastroesophageal reflux disease. It occurs in the upper airway of the respiratory system. Generally, a cough lasts around 1–2 weeks, however, chronic cough can persist for an extended period of time defined as 6 weeks or longer. People with chronic cough often experience more than one cause present. Due to the nature of the syndrome the treatments that are used are similar however there is a subsequent number of treatments available.
   Symptoms can vary greatly, but they include a persistent dry cough.
  
  Section::::Symptoms.:Complications.
  
  Failure to have a pulmonary sequestration removed can lead to a number of complications. These include:
  
  BULLET::::- Potentially fatal hemorrhage
  
  BULLET::::- The creation of a left-right shunt, where blood flows in a shortcut through the feed off the aorta
  
  BULLET::::- Chronic infection with diseases such as
  
  BULLET::::- Bronchiectasis
  
  BULLET::::- Tuberculosis
  
  BULLET::::- Aspergillosis
  
  BULLET::::- Bronchial carcinoid
  
  BULLET::::- Bronchogenic squamous cell carcinoma
  
  Section::::Cause.
   The classic presentation of COP is the development of nonspecific systemic (e.g., fevers, chills, night sweats, fatigue, weight loss) and respiratory (e.g. difficulty breathing, cough) symptoms in association with filling of the lung alveoli that is visible on chest x-ray. This presentation is usually so suggestive of an infection that the majority of patients with COP have been treated with at least one failed course of antibiotics by the time the true diagnosis is made.
  
  Section::::Causes.
  
  BULLET::::- Pulmonary infection by bacteria, viruses and parasites
  
  BULLET::::- Drugs: antineoplastic drugs, erlotinib, amiodarone
  
  BULLET::::- Toxic fumes
  
  BULLET::::- Ionizing radiations
  
  BULLET::::- Inflammatory diseases
   Coughing is a mechanism of the body that is essential to normal physiological function of clearing the throat which involves a reflex of the afferent sensory limb, central processing centre of the brain and the efferent limb. In conjunction to the components of the body that are involved, sensory receptors are also used. These receptors include rapidly adapting receptors which respond to mechanical stimuli, slowly adapting receptors and nociceptors which respond to chemical stimuli such as hormones in the body. To start the reflex, the afferent impulses are transmitted to the medulla of the brain this involves the stimulus which is then interpreted. The efferent impulses are then triggered by the medulla causing the signal to travel down the larynx and bronchial tree. This then triggers a cascade of events that involve the intercostal muscles, abdominal wall, diaphragm and pelvic floor which in conjunction together create the reflex known as coughing.
   There are a number of different cough and cold medications, which may be used for various coughing symptoms. The commercially available products may include various combinations of any one or more of the following types of substances: 
  
  BULLET::::- Mucokinetics, or mucolytics, are a class of drugs which aid in the clearance of mucus from the airways, lungs, bronchi, and trachea. Examples are carbocisteine, ambroxol, and bromhexine.
  
  BULLET::::- Expectorants are substances claimed to make coughing easier while enhancing the production of mucus and phlegm. Two examples are acetylcysteine and guaifenesin.
   Section::::Treatment.
   The incubation period is 5–7 days (with a range of 3–10). Symptoms can include a harsh, dry cough, retching, sneezing, snorting, gagging or vomiting in response to light pressing of the trachea or after excitement or exercise. The presence of a fever varies from case to case.
  
  Section::::Symptoms.:Types.
   A cold usually begins with fatigue, a feeling of being chilled, sneezing, and a headache, followed in a couple of days by a runny nose and cough. Symptoms may begin within sixteen hours of exposure and typically peak two to four days after onset. They usually resolve in seven to ten days, but some can last for up to three weeks. The average duration of cough is eighteen days and in some cases people develop a post-viral cough which can linger after the infection is gone. In children, the cough lasts for more than ten days in 35–40% of cases and continues for more than 25 days in 10%.
   BULLET::::- Persistent cough
  
  BULLET::::- Shortness of breath
  
  BULLET::::- Increased susceptibility to respiratory illness
  
  Symptoms of chronic chemical pneumonitis may or may not be present, and can take months or years to develop to the point of noticeability.
  
  Section::::Diagnosis.
   A foreign body can sometimes be suspected, for example if the cough started suddenly when the patient was eating. Rarely, sutures left behind inside the airway branches can cause coughing. A cough can be triggered by dryness from mouth breathing or recurrent aspiration of food into the windpipe in people with swallowing difficulties.
  
  Section::::Differential diagnosis.:Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor.
   People who are on mechanical ventilation are often sedated and are rarely able to communicate. As such, many of the typical symptoms of pneumonia will either be absent or unable to be obtained. The most important signs are fever or low body temperature, new purulent sputum, and hypoxemia (decreasing amounts of oxygen in the blood). However, these symptoms may be similar for tracheobronchitis.
  
  Section::::Cause.
  
  Section::::Cause.:Risk factors.
   When laryngospasm is coincident with a cold or flu, it may be helpful for some sufferers to take acid reflux medication to limit the irritants in the area. If a cough is present, then treat a wet cough; but limit coughing whenever possible, as it is only likely to trigger a spasm. Drink water or tea to keep the area from drying up. Saline drops also help to keep the area moist. Pseudoephederine may also help to clear any mucus that may cause coughing and thereby triggering more spasms.
  
  Section::::Treatment.
   BULLET::::- Blood pressure drugs such as angiotensin-converting enzyme, which is commonly prescribed to individuals with high blood pressure and cardiac failure and are known to have a side effect of chronic cough.
   Cough may also be caused by conditions affecting the lung tissue such as bronchiectasis, cystic fibrosis, interstitial lung diseases and sarcoidosis. Coughing can also be triggered by benign or malignant lung tumors or mediastinal masses. Through irritation of the nerve, diseases of the external auditory canal (wax, for example) can also cause cough. Cardiovascular diseases associated with cough are heart failure, pulmonary infarction and aortic aneurysm. Nocturnal cough is associated with heart failure, as the heart does not compensate for the increased volume shift to the pulmonary circulation, in turn causing pulmonary edema and resultant cough. Other causes of nocturnal cough include asthma, post-nasal drip and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Another cause of cough occurring preferentially in supine position is recurrent aspiration.
   BULLET::::- Chemical irritants such as cigarette smoke or other irritants are a common factor that can lead to chronic cough. These irritants typically contribute towards chronic bronchitis.
  
  BULLET::::- Other notable rare causes include: aspiration, bronchiectasis, bronchiolitis, cystic fibrosis, laryngopharyngeal reflux, lung cancer, non-asthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis, sarcoidosis.
  
  Section::::Risk factors.
  