It’s been over two months since Rebecca started coughing. And honestly, it had become a concern for her housemates. Being under COVID-19 lockdown, everyone had thought she had the virus. After a COVID PCR test came out negative, Rebecca become more worried; what might be making me cough this much for this long?
Prolonged cough is one that lasts two months or longer in adults or a month or more in children. Prolonged cough itself is not the disease, but almost always due to an underlying condition or an effect of the individual’s lifestyle. Prolonged cough should never be neglected, andaffected persons should seek medical help as soon as possible.
Common causes of prolonged cough include:
1. Smoking: When someone who smokes has a cough that lasts for almost a month, it is termed “Smoker’s cough.” Although this type of cough starts as a dry cough, the affected individual might start producing phlegm or mucus with each bout of cough. Chronic bronchitis, a prolonged inflammation of the airways and lungs also causes prolonged cough and smoking is one of its risk factors.
2. Asthma: Prolonged cough is a typical symptom in individuals that have ‘Cough-variant asthma’. Affected individuals have inflamed airways, and these narrowed airways make it hard to breathe, thus causing the individual to experience bouts of cough.
Common symptoms include dry cough, shortness of breath, and chest pain. This cough could last several weeks, and it can occur at any time of the day. The cough increases when such individuals are exposed to triggers such as dust, smoke, or cold air.
3. Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD)/ Acid reflux: This is a digestive disease where the stomach acid flows upward into the food pipe thereby irritating it. Sometimes, these acid contents may land into the airways, triggering a cough reflex. If this occurs regularly, the affected individual could have a cough that lasts up to 3 months.
4. Lung cancer: Prolonged cough is one of the early symptoms of lung cancer. It occurs even before cancer has spread beyond the individual’s lungs. The cough results frominflammation and build-up of fluid in the chest cavity. Clinical features might include coughing up blood or blood-stained phlegm. Individuals with lung cancer also experience chest pain that worsens with every cough.
5. Allergies: Allergies such as hay fever can cause a chronic dry cough. Allergens include dust, mold, pollen, and so on. These also tighten and irritate the airways, producing frequent bouts of cough for as long as you are exposed to them.
6. Cystic fibrosis: There is clogging of the airways of the lungs by thick and sticky mucus. This causes affected individuals to cough persistently.
7. Medication side effects: Certain drugs have been linked with prolonged cough. This type of cough is called “drug-induced chronic cough.” Common culprits include Lisinopril and propranolol, which are blood pressure medications.
8. Chest Infections: Chronic chest infections, including Tuberculosis could cause prolonged cough. In addition to cough, these diseases also cause other symptoms, such as fever, malaise, and shortness of breath
If you have been experiencing frequent bouts of cough spanning several weeks, it is time to speak to your doctor. Your doctor will perform some clinical examinations and investigations to determine the cause of the cough and commence the needed treatment. Don’t ignore prolonged cough, it could mean something sinister.
