Interviewee: Han Shuhua, Deputy Chief Physician, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Zhongda Hospital, Southeast University

Some patients don't cough seriously, so they don't take it seriously. Sometimes they cough badly. They take some expectorants, cough relievers or anti-inflammatory drugs and give up. The symptoms are good and bad, but they don't care. If the symptoms are serious, you may think you have "tracheitis" if you cough repeatedly.

Chronic cough means that the cough time is longer than 8 weeks and no obvious abnormality is found on X-ray chest film or chest CT. Tracheitis mainly refers to acute or chronic inflammation of the trachea. Acute inflammation is mostly caused by virus, bacteria, etc; Chronic bronchitis is more common in patients with chronic diseases, such as long-term smoking, old tuberculosis, etc.

The trachea of the human body is divided into bronchi on both sides. The trachea is a large lumen. When it is inflamed, it mainly shows phlegm and cough. Clinically, tracheitis and bronchitis can be identified by auscultation of the lungs and chest radiography.

There are many causes of chronic cough, including allergies to pollen and paint, asthma, rhinitis, pharyngitis, stomach disease history, and irritating smells such as cold air, dust and oil smoke. In addition, "eosinophilic bronchitis" and "cough variant asthma" are also common causes of chronic cough. The symptoms of the two diseases are similar, both of which are characterized by paroxysmal severe cough, heavy at night, and allergy in the past. There is another type of chronic cough secondary to acute respiratory tract infection, which has nothing to do with allergic factors. It is called "cough after infection". The drug treatment effect is not good, but it will gradually alleviate.

In short, there are many reasons for chronic cough, most of which are not caused by chronic bronchitis, and anti infective drugs are not needed. ▲