A sudden and short cough while enjoying a night out at one of Athen’s downtown restaurants may have you thinking something simply went “down the wrong pipe”. A minor irritation, the cough clears after a few seconds, and you enjoy your evening meal.
When the cough lingers for a few days, especially during the fall and winter months, you may think the cough is a sign of the cold or the flu. When the cough continues to linger, it may be caused by seasonal allergies, bronchitis, or pneumonia.
When you cough, your body is protecting itself and clearing your airways of potential irritants. Coughing is an important part of your body’s defense and is especially common during fall and winter as the weather cools, cold and flu season spikes, and allergies peak. However, a cough that lingers or is accompanied by other symptoms may be a sign from your body that something else is going on.
In this blog, we’ll cover the symptoms and questions to ask when you experience a lingering and persistent cough. And keep in mind this general rule of thumb with lingering coughs: if the cough lasts longer than 3 weeks with no signs of improvement and is accompanied by other symptoms, a visit to AFC Urgent Care in Athens should happen.
Your Lingering Cough: Important Questions to Ask
Occasional coughing is a normal response of the body. Your throat and lungs are coated in a small amount of mucus, which serves to keep the airway moist and works as a protective barrier. Infrequent and occasional coughing helps move the mucus and remove any irritants that you accidentally breathe in, which protects your body.
Since coughing is an important part of your body’s defense system, it is important to understand what your body is telling you when it lingers. Plus, a forceful and lingering cough can cause exhaustion, sleeplessness, headaches, urinary incontinence, and even broken ribs.
When you suffer from a lingering cough, take note of the duration of your cough, the type and intensity of the cough, as well as any other symptoms and medical history you have. That information will help you determine when a visit to your local AFC Urgent Care Athens is needed.
What is the Duration of Your Cough?
A acute cough lasts less than 3 weeks, is typically minor, and can be caused by a variety of illnesses and conditions including the common cold, the flu, and minor seasonal allergies. Acute coughs typically do not require medical attention and can be improved with over-the-counter medications and at-home remedies.
A chronic cough lasts longer than 8 weeks in adults or longer than four weeks in children. A chronic cough requires medical attention to determine the underlying cause.
There is also a middle category referred to as subacute, when a cough lasts 3 to 8 weeks.
At-Home Remedies for Acute Coughs
While acute coughs are typically minor and may not require medical attention, they can still be frustrating and impact your daily life. Before you seek medical care for your minor cough, try these simple at-home remedies. They will soothe the irritation and relieve the pain caused by your cough.
If your cough lingers or worsens after trying these remedies, that will also serve as a sign your acute cough requires a visit to AFC Athens for evaluation:
- Stay Hydrated: Drinking at least eight glasses of water each day. Fluids can keep your throat moist and help thin mucus, making it easier to clear. Consider adding honey to your water or hot tea.
- Add Moisture to the Air: Dry air can make coughing and throat irritation worse. Using a humidifier or relaxing in a steamy bathroom can add moisture and help soothe irritated airways.
- Cough Drops: Sucking on cough drops or hard candy can keep your throat moist and provide temporary relief from a dry, irritating cough.
- Avoid Being Around Smoke: Avoiding smoke such as cigarettes can give your lungs and throat a better chance to recover.
What Other Symptoms Are Accompanying Your Cough?
Does your cough bring up mucus? If there is mucus, what’s the consistency and color? Is there any blood? Do you have a fever, headache, shortness of breath or wheezing sounds when you cough?
As mentioned, most acute and minor coughs will resolve on their own. However, if your cough is accompanied by other symptoms and the at-home remedies did not ease your cough, you should visit AFC Urgent Care Athens for treatment. These symptoms below signal that there may be an underlying condition that requires medical attention:
- If your cough brings up mucus, or phlegm, your cough could be caused by pneumonia, bronchitis, or the flu. The color of the mucus is also important to note, such as yellowish-green mucus or blood.
- You experience severe chest pain or difficulty breathing.
- High fever, chills, or night sweats accompany your cough.
- Your cough makes sounds, like whooping, wheezing or barking, may also signal an underlying problem.
What Factors Could Be Triggering Your Cough?
When you visit AFC Athens for a lingering cough, your medical provider will ask about your symptoms, how the cough has changed, along with your medical and health history. These questions help identify potential triggers and root causes of lingering coughs.
Timing and Intensity of Your Cough
- Is the cough worse at certain times of day, like morning or night?
- Do you cough more after eating, lying down, or during physical activity?
- Did the cough start after a cold, flu, or other illness?
- Is the cough getting better, worse, or staying the same?
Medical and Health History
- Do you have any allergies or cough triggers you experience regularly and seasonally?
- What medical illnesses do you have?
- Do you smoke, vape, or use drugs?
- Have you recently been in close contact with people with any respiratory infections such as common cold, tuberculosis, pneumonia or whooping cough?
Common Causes of Subacute & Chronic Coughs
While acute coughs typically show improvement in a few days or weeks, subacute and chronic coughs linger for more than 3 weeks, sometimes lasting for months or even years. Medical care is needed for coughs that linger for over 3 weeks.
Smoking is a leading cause of subacute and chronic coughs, but there are a number of other conditions that cause subacute or chronic coughs. These are the top five conditions that contribute to lingering coughs in non-smokers, as outlined by Harvard Health Publishing:
- Postnasal Drip: When excess mucus drips down the back of your nose and into your throat, causing a tickling and uncomfortable feeling.
- Asthma: A long-term lung disease that causes inflammation, swelling, and narrowing of the airways, making it hard to breathe.
- Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD): GERD occurs when stomach contents travel backward, making their way up into the esophagus instead of down into the intestines.
- Chronic Bronchitis: An inflammation of the bronchial tubes in the lungs that leads to swelling and extra mucus production. Bronchitis typically follows a viral infection, such as the common cold or the flu, or is triggered following a bacterial infection or due to environmental factors such as air pollution or dust.
- Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE) Inhibitors: ACE inhibitors are a treatment commonly used for high blood pressure and heart failure, and a persistent cough is a side effect of ACE inhibitors.
If you experience a chronic cough, the medical providers at AFC Urgent Care Athens will begin by reviewing your symptoms and performing a physical exam. In some cases, we may order additional tests such as checking your oxygen levels, taking a chest X-ray, or analyzing a mucus sample.
Schedule Your AFC Athens Visit Today
Your body is an incredibly interconnected and complex system, with countless processes working together to keep you healthy and defended from threats. Coughing is one of them.
While some coughs are minor, a lingering cough is a way for your body to tell you something else is going on and can be more powerful than it may seem. In fact, when you cough, you propel air and particles out of our lungs and throat at speeds close to 50 miles per hour, according to the American Lung Association.
When you struggle with a lingering cough, visit your local AFC Urgent Care Athens for quick, affordable, and compassionate care. Our experienced medical providers will evaluate your symptoms and create a treatment plan for you.
Our clinic is open seven days a week with extended hours. Pre-register your appointment or walk in to AFC Urgent Care Athens today!