Nocturnal cough

A common cause of night-time coughing is the backflow of stomach acid into the esophagus, which is facilitated by lying down.This so-called gastroesophageal reflux is not uncommon, affects women and men equally and is aggravated by coffee consumption, nicotine, overweight, alcohol and stress; the actual cause is a weakness of the stomach entrance sphincter. Further symptoms are irritation up to inflammation of the esophageal mucosa, heartburn, belching, hoarseness, chronic coughing and in severe cases breathing difficulties. If reflux disease is suspected, the doctor can make the diagnosis by means of a gastroscopy.

It is usually treated with proton pump inhibitors and acid blockers. Coughing at night can also indicate bronchitis. This first leads to a dry, irritable cough and later to a cough with viscous sputum, as the production of mucus in the bronchi is increased.

The cough can be accompanied by typical cold symptoms, reduced performance and background noises when breathing. Bronchitis usually heals by itself in one to two weeks, but the irritable cough can last up to six weeks. If there is no improvement after this period, a doctor should be consulted.

Patients with a known asthma disease often have night-time asthma attacks, as the dilatation of the bronchial system decreases at night and can increase the symptoms. But a serious illness does not always have to be behind nocturnal coughing: A poor indoor climate can also cause irritable coughs. The formation of mucus in the throat and pharynx is then reduced by dry, warm air. Turning off the heating and ventilation before going to bed or sleeping with the window tilted often already improves the symptoms. If the outside temperatures do not allow this, a bowl of water on the heater can provide a more pleasant room climate.

Coughing due to allergy

Allergies can manifest themselves with a wide variety of symptoms and affect different organs. The respiratory tract can typically be affected by hay fever, house dust allergy, allergies to mold and food allergies. Hay fever, or also called pollen allergy, describes the allergy to flower pollen of certain plants and thus occurs seasonally and affects almost one third of the population in Germany.

If the mucous membranes of the nose or eye come into contact with the pollen, it leads to runny nose, sneezing, foreign body sensation in the eye, redness and tears in the eyes. General itching or skin rashes can also occur. If hay fever remains untreated, allergic asthma can develop; coughing and shortness of breath are often the first signs.

Animal hair allergies can also lead to allergic asthma. The symptoms of a mold allergy are similar to those of a dust mite allergy: sneezing, itching, rhinitis, coughing and even shortness of breath or chronic bronchitis can occur. The symptoms that can be triggered by a food allergy are very varied and can affect any organ system. In the respiratory tract, there can be inflammation of the mucous membranes, rhinitis, swelling of the larynx or narrowing of the airways with coughing and shortness of breath.