Synonyms in a broader sense
cough, chicks, chestnuts, irritable cough : to cough
Dry irritable cough
The dry irritable cough is characterized by the fact that the patient does not expel mucus from the lungs when coughing (unproductive cough). The cough sounds much harder than the productive cough and is also felt more painful by the patients. The causes of irritable cough are irritation and inflammation of the lower respiratory tract, e.g.
by foreign bodies that have been inhaled (especially in children) and by tumors (e.g. bronchial carcinoma). Pollutants, such as dust, gases or chemical vapors can also cause dry irritated cough. In addition to inflammation of the lower respiratory tract, some diseases of the upper respiratory tract can also cause dry dry dry cough.
Dry whooping cough can also be caused by inflammation of the larynx (laryngitis), inflammation of the windpipe (tracheitis) and inflammation of the bronchial mucosa (bronchitis). Irritations of the nasal mucosa, throat, auditory canals and sinuses can also lead to dry irritated cough. This is particularly common in patients with a very sensitive vagus nerve, which can sometimes reflect irritation in tissues far from the lungs as a cough.
A typical example is the cough after eating ice cream, which is also caused by this effect. Some medications, such as the so-called ACE inhibitors, also cause a cough that is irritating in addition to the desired effect of lowering blood pressure. Dry irritable cough can also be caused by drugs containing the active ingredient acetylcysteic acid (aspirin).
In the case of a cough caused by medication, it must be considered to change or discontinue the corresponding medication. Smaller pulmonary embolisms or a so-called pneumothorax, in which the lung detaches from the chest and constricts, may also be the only symptom that causes a dry, irritable cough. For this reason, this symptom must always be investigated if the cause of the cough is not known. In the classic picture of bronchial asthma, dry dry dry dry cough is another symptom.
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