HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:
Guest Access | Sign In via User Name/Password

This Article Full Text Free Full Text (PDF) Free Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to My Personal Article Archive Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Pratter, M. R. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Pratter, M. R.

Overview of Common Causes of Chronic Cough

ACCP Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines

Correspondence to: Melvin R. Pratter, MD, FCCP, Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine at Camden, Suite 312, 3 Cooper Plaza, Camden, NJ 08103; e-mail: Pratter-Melvin{at}cooperhealth.edu

Objective: To review the literature on the most common causes of chronic cough.

Methods: MEDLINE was searched (through May 2004) for studies published in the English language since 1980 on human subjects using the medical subject heading terms "cough," "causes of cough," and "etiology of cough." Case series and prospective descriptive clinical trials were selected for review. Also obtained were any references from these studies that were pertinent to the topic

Results: Upper airway cough syndrome (UACS) due to a variety of rhinosinus conditions, previously referred to as postnasal drip syndrome, asthma, nonasthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis (NAEB), and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are the most common causes of chronic cough. Each of these diagnoses may be present alone or in combination and may be clinically silent apart from the cough itself.

Conclusion: In the absence of evidence for the presence of another disorder, an approach focused on detecting the presence of UACS, asthma, NAEB, or GERD, alone or in combination, is likely to have a far higher yield than routinely searching for relatively uncommon or obscure diagnoses.

Key Words: asthma • chronic cough • gastroesophageal reflux • nonasthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis • postnasal drip syndrome • upper airway cough syndrome

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. S. Irwin, M. H. Baumann, D. C. Bolser, L.-P. Boulet, S. S. Braman, C. E. Brightling, K. K. Brown, B. J. Canning, A. B. Chang, P. V. Dicpinigaitis, et al. Diagnosis and Management of Cough Executive Summary: ACCP Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines Chest, January 1, 2006; 129(1_suppl): 1S - 23S. [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. R. Pratter, C. E. Brightling, L. P. Boulet, and R. S. Irwin An Empiric Integrative Approach to the Management of Cough: ACCP Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines Chest, January 1, 2006; 129(1_suppl): 222S - 231S. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]