Dry cough • Causes & home remedies

Coughing is a natural protective reaction of the body: the reflex clears the airways of mucus, dust and foreign bodies. In the case of a dry cough or dry cough, little or no mucus (sputum) is coughed up. It often occurs at the beginning of a cold and can be very tormenting, especially at night. Dry cough is caused by irritation of the airways from foreign bodies, pollutants and inflammation. Illnesses or the use of certain medications can also lead to dry coughs.

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Medicines and home remedies for dry coughs

Home remedies and antitussive agents have proven to be effective in relieving irritable coughs in acute cases as quickly as possible and thus finding restful sleep, especially if you have a cold.

Home remedies and natural remedies

Various herbal remedies are available as natural cough suppressants. All means have in common: They produce mucous substances themselves, which lie down like a protective film on the dry airways and soothe them.

• Lozenges or cough drops (for example with Icelandic moss) increase the flow of saliva.

• Sundew, ribwort, mallow, elderberry, coltsfoot and marshmallow tea are also among the home remedies for dry coughs.

• Warm milk with honey has a similar effect.

In addition, simple measures such as increased fluid intake (water or unsweetened tea), cough-relieving teas and humidifying the room air can provide relief. Steam baths and inhalation also moisten the airways. Smoking should be avoided if you have a dry cough.

Cough suppressants

Cough suppressants, so-called antitussives or cough blockers, are used specifically to relieve the cough stimulus in the case of dry, irritating cough. The active ingredients that have a dampening effect on the cough center in the brain include, for example, codeine, dihydrocodeine and dextromethorphan. It should only be used for a short time.

As a rule, it is recommended to take cough suppressants in the evening, while cough removers (for productive coughs with sputum) are better used during the day. This is important because the dissolved mucus has to be actively coughed up in order to remove the breeding ground for pathogens. If cough suppressants and cough suppressants are taken at the same time, this can lead to a mutual blockage of the effects. If in doubt, you should seek advice from your doctor or pharmacist.

What to do with a chronic dry cough?

If the irritable cough persists, the first step is to treat the underlying cause. If foreign bodies or pollutants are the cause of the dry cough, they should be removed or avoided. If there is a disease, its therapy plays a central role in getting the trigger of the irritable cough under control in the long term.

How does the urge to cough arise?

In principle, the cough reflex can be triggered wherever cough receptors (stimulus receptors) are present – this applies to the entire area of ​​the upper and lower airways, especially in the larynx, the trachea and the large bronchi, and to a lesser extent in the small bronchi Chest membrane (pleura), pericardium, diaphragm, esophagus and stomach.

In most cases, dry cough is a strong cough that occurs acutely and lasts for a limited period of time. However, dry cough can also be chronic.

Causes of dry cough

Dry cough or dry cough can have various causes, most of which are directly in the respiratory tract, sometimes in other organs. It often occurs as part of a cold, but other underlying diseases are also possible.

Dry cough occurs particularly often in the context of respiratory infections: A dry cough is typical, for example at the beginning of a cold. The dry cough then turns into a cough with sputum. Even a real flu can initially make itself felt with a dry cough, and a pronounced feeling of illness and fever are also typical. In addition, a dry cough can persist as a post-infectious cough even after an acute infection has subsided.

Other possible causes of dry cough:

• Foreign bodies in the airways
• dry room air (e.g. by heating in winter)
• Inhalation of harmful substances such as dust, gases, chemical vapors, nicotine smoke
• Inflammation of the larynx (laryngitis)
• Inflammation of the windpipe (tracheitis)
• acute bronchitis
• allergic reactions not only to pollen, but also to certain foods

Diseases can also be a cause of dry cough:

In a number of other illnesses, dry cough is an accompanying symptom:

Certain medications, such as ACE inhibitors and beta blockers, cause a dry cough as a side effect.

Last but not least, dry cough can also be attributed to psychological causes. This psychogenic cough usually occurs after bronchitis and may persist for years after the illness, even though the airways are healthy. Coughing fits occur, especially in times of stress, psychological tension and in emotionally stressful situations.

What the doctor examines

If the dry cough persists for a long time, you are regularly tormented by dry cough, no obvious cause of the cough is apparent or other symptoms appear, you should consult a doctor.

Medical history and physical examination

When talking to the patient (anamnesis), the doctor asks about the type of irritable cough and possible triggers, for example professional work with irritating substances. He is also interested in when and in what context the dry cough occurs or has occurred (for example at night, when lying down) and whether there are other symptoms such as fever, chest pain, heartburn or shortness of breath.

The conversation is followed by a physical examination, which primarily includes an assessment of the general condition, an inspection of the throat, tapping and listening to the lungs and listening to the heart.

Possible examinations for dry cough

If you have severe symptoms or a cough that lasts longer than three weeks, you should also have one X-ray examination of the chest (Chest x-ray), a lung function test (measurement of lung and respiratory volumes as well as respiratory flow strength) and a blood gas analysis (determination of the oxygen and carbon dioxide content in the blood) as part of the standard diagnostic program.

Depending on the initial suspicion and accompanying symptoms, further examinations may follow, for example

• Lungoscopy (bronchoscopy)
• Computed tomography (CT) scan of the chest
• Contrast media display of the pulmonary vessels (pulmonary angiography, a form of angiography)
• Representation of the circulation and ventilation conditions in the lungs (scintigraphy of the lungs)
• Deriving the heart currents (electrocardiography, EKG)
• further ear, nose and throat examinations
• Esophagus and gastroscopy (gastroscopy)
• X-ray examination of the esophagus while the patient is swallowing a contrast medium (X-ray swallow)

Cough carefully and properly

Anyone who suffers from a dry cough in the end of a flu-like infection should better pay attention to a special technique when coughing. Humans cough instinctively, but not always correctly: If you give in too much to the stimulus in the throat, you injure the fine tissue of the bronchial tubes, causing another coughing stimulus. Correct coughing therefore means, above all, coughing gently: the person affected forms a fist with his left hand, into which he gently coughs and puffs up his cheeks. This creates a small air barrier down to the bronchi.

This air barrier ensures that the bronchi do not collide so strongly when coughing – because this is exactly where the problem of dry or unproductive irritable cough lies. It originally arises from an infection: Viruses attack the mucous membrane and are fended off. However, this can cause cracks. These wounds ensure that the nerve fibers in the mucous membrane are excited by a blast of cold air or inhalation of smoke – the affected person repeatedly gets an urge to cough.

The best home remedies for a cold