Зміст
There’s nothing wrong with a wet cough! Although no one associates this with anything positive, it is actually a natural protective reflex of the body. It is used to remove unwanted elements from the respiratory tract, such as gases or dust, but mainly phlegm. This is a real problem, because an increased amount of it indicates ongoing illness. How is bronchial secretion produced? And how to help the body clear the airways?
How does a wet cough occur?
Cough is caused by irritation of the nerve endings in the respiratory tract, including:
- contraction of smooth muscles,
- swelling of the bronchial mucosa,
- factors causing inflammation,
- foreign body,
- chemical compounds.
When there is excess mucus in the bronchi, a wet cough develops, facilitating expectoration and clearing the airways. However, if the disease occurs without excess mucus, the cough is dry. You can read more about this here.
A wet cough is deeper and less tiresome than a dry cough. It gets worse after waking up, because a lot of secretions accumulate in the respiratory tract during the night. A dry cough, on the contrary, is hoarse, characterized by tiresome attacks and worsens in the evening. Does not cause expectoration of secretions.
Causes of wet cough
A wet cough most often appears with a viral infection, less often with a bacterial one. It can also accompany more serious illnesses such as inflammation or abscess of the lung. A wet cough also occurs with chronic diseases, for example:
- asthma,
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD),
- cystic fibrosis.
How long does a wet cough last?
In general, cough can be divided into:
- acute – up to 4 weeks,
- chronic – more than 4 weeks.
With a respiratory infection, a wet cough usually does not last long. It has been shown that in 9 out of 10 children it disappears after a maximum of 25 days. In turn, chronic cough mainly accompanies more serious lung diseases, as well as smoking and allergies.
Sometimes a wet cough after a cold last longer than other symptoms. The infection irritates and weakens the bronchi, making them more sensitive to various irritants. This condition is sometimes called subacute cough and can last up to 8 weeks after the cold has passed.
How to treat a wet cough?
There are many drugs for wet coughs in pharmacies. They are available in the form of syrups, inhalation solutions, tablets, sachets, and drops. The substances they contain have similar effects, but differ in strength, effectiveness, and safety.
N-acetylcysteine, carbocysteine, erdosteine
These substances are derivatives of the amino acid cysteine and also have similar properties. They reduce the viscosity of mucus and the adhesion of bacteria to the walls of the respiratory tract. Thus, they suppress the production of the secretions they cause. They also have antioxidant properties, shorten the duration of cough and increase the effectiveness of antibiotics.
Erdosteine is available without a prescription in the form of tablets and sachets to be dissolved in water. You can find N-acetylcysteine in the form of inhalation solutions, effervescent tablets or syrups. Carbocisteine is available in the form of syrups, lozenges, or capsules.
All of the above drugs, except erdosteine, have one drawback. They act not only on the mucus of the respiratory tract, but also on the mucus in the digestive tract. Its task is to protect the walls of the stomach from aggressive digestive juices. Therefore, expectorants can weaken this protective barrier.
For a healthy person this does not matter, but if you suffer from erosions or ulcers, expectorants can cause unpleasant symptoms. A safe solution in this situation is erdosteine, which is activated only in an alkaline environment. Thanks to this, it is inactive in the stomach and therefore does not affect the protective mucosa.
