Lung Condition: Cough

Coughs, whether they’re productive or non-productive, can be caused by a wide variety of disorders and conditions. Some of these include:

While in many cases, a cough will do its job and remove foreign material from the body, in other cases, coughing can be chronic and reveal a more serious condition. In these cases, it’s important to see a lung physician like those at the Gwinnett Pulmonary Group.

Your physician may ask to listen to you cough to determine what kind of cough you have. Because a cough is a symptom of something greater, he or she may investigate further to determine what the underlying condition may be. Examinations including chest X-rays, blood tests and lab tests of mucus samples may be used in diagnosis.

How your healthcare provider recommends your cough be treated is dependent on what underlying condition is causing the cough. He or she will determine if antibiotics or other medication are necessary.

When you have a cough, you can often treat it at home using over-the-counter cough remedies, expectorants, cough suppressants and more. Drinking plenty of fluids and avoiding exposure to irritants can also help a cough.