What disease does a persistent dry cough warn of?

The article was professionally consulted by Master, Doctor Dang Xuan Cuong - Emergency Department - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital. The doctor has 14 years of experience in the field of emergency resuscitation and poison control.

Cough is a protective function of the body to expel fluids, phlegm secreted by the bronchi or lungs, or foreign bodies from the respiratory tract. Cough can also be a symptom of certain disorders in the body. When a dry cough lasts for a long time, it will make the patient uncomfortable, miserable and needs to be treated promptly.

A persistent dry cough is a cough that does not produce sputum, although the patient may cough a lot and intensely. However, there are still cases where patients swallow sputum either because they do not want to or do not know how to spit.
Prolonged dry cough should pay attention to diseases such as: diseases related to the larynx, ear infections, chronic mastoiditis. A persistent dry cough can also be caused by bronchial cancer, usually occurs in people who have a long history of smoking, waterpipe tobacco (usually over 10 years). In particular, dry cough is also caused by diseases in the interstitium of the lung such as pulmonary fibrosis, subacute pulmonary edema, lung cancer, tuberculosis or chronic pleural effusion. In addition, persistent dry cough can also be caused by certain toxins that directly stimulate the allergic (asthmatic) immune system. In addition, dry cough is also caused by a side effect of some drugs, especially those used to treat high blood pressure (coversyl) that have been used for a long time.

Symptoms of dry cough persist at night, during the day there is only a dry cough with no signs of flu or sore throat, but when napping or at night, there is a cough, itchy throat and persistent cough. This condition happens often, it will affect sleep, make the patient uncomfortable, tired and irritable, and work performance will be affected. Nocturnal cough in adults can be caused by the following factors:
Asthma : Most patients with asthma may experience breathing problems such as a persistent dry cough. So, a dry cough at night can also be an early symptom of asthma. Asthma symptoms appear and disappear depending on activities and external factors. In particular, the first symptoms of asthma are often coughing and wheezing, the symptoms are often pale, relapsing, and often worse at night, with exertion or when experiencing cold. A cold, flu or respiratory infection in the body can cause an asthma flare-up, when the patient feels short of breath, wheezing, dry cough or cough with increased phlegm, feeling heavy in the chest.. Sinusitis: When you have sinusitis, the sinuses are blocked causing stuffy nose, mucus from the sinuses flows down the back of the throat. During the day, these mucus are expelled or floated down the digestive tract, but at night, the mucus is easy to stagnate in the throat and cause coughing. The stuffy nose caused by sinusitis causes the patient to breathe through the mouth while sleeping, causing the throat to be dry, burning and coughing at night. The acid reflux in gastroesophageal reflux disease (also known as GERD) also causes a persistent dry cough. When lying down, the acid that causes indigestion and heartburn in the stomach can back up into the esophagus, overflowing into the lungs, leading to a persistent dry cough. If the cause of a dry cough that persists at night has been determined to be reflux, try to eat less in the evening, and sleep with your head elevated to reduce reflux and relieve coughing.

Dry cough many times, successively in episodes for a short time, typically a pertussis attack: the patient will cough immediately, then take a long breath and continue to cough again. A prolonged cough will cause increased pressure in the chest, causing stasis of the superior vena cava, causing the patient to blush, distended neck veins, the cough can even make tears, sometimes even cause vomiting reflex. Patients with whooping cough may be accompanied by aching pain in the chest, back, and abdomen due to excessive contraction of the respiratory muscles.

Dry cough with blood is a cough accompanied by blood. Coughing up blood ranges from mild to severe. This can be a warning sign of acute and chronic pneumonia, lung cancer... Coughing up blood can happen suddenly while the patient feels well or after being active. Normally, 90% of cases of hemoptysis are due to advanced pulmonary tuberculosis, often with persistent cough, low-grade fever, and weight loss. If coughing up a little blood and mixed with sputum, the cough recurs a few times without fever or weight loss, TB should also be considered.

Coughing can be just a normal physiological manifestation of the body with an irritant, but it can also be a warning sign of a serious illness, especially in children and the elderly. Need to be very careful when the dry cough persists, accompanied by fever, difficulty breathing, cyanosis, exhaustion...
If the patient has a dry cough that lasts for more than 5 days, regardless of the cough, need to see a doctor right away. If the cough persists for more than 3 weeks, does not improve with drug therapy, is accompanied by fever, or coughs with green, rusty brown, yellow sputum, coughing up blood, shallow breathing, or chest pain when coughing, these could be signs of some dangerous diseases, need to be examined and treated promptly at Vinmec International General Hospital, with a system of modern facilities, medical equipment and a team of experts and doctors. With years of experience, Vinmec examines and treats common ear, nose and throat diseases, head and neck tumors, congenital malformations of the ear, nose and throat area with the most optimal internal-surgical methods for patients, both children and adults. Coming to Vinmec International General Hospital, patients will receive a direct, dedicated, professional examination and can be completely assured of examination and treatment at the hospital.