When is coughing an emergency?
Most coughs will clear up, or at least significantly improve, within two weeks. If you have a cough that hasn’t improved in this amount of time, see a doctor, as it may be a symptom of a more serious problem.
If additional symptoms develop, contact your doctor as soon as possible. Symptoms to watch out for include:
fever
chest pains
headaches
drowsiness
confusion
Coughing up blood or having difficulty breathing requires immediate emergency medical attention.
How is a cough treated?
Coughs can be treated in a variety of ways, depending on the cause. For healthy adults, most treatments will involve self-care.
At-home treatments
A cough that results from a virus can’t be treated with antibiotics. You can, however, soothe it in the following ways:
Keep hydrated by drinking plenty of water.
Elevate your head with extra pillows when sleeping.
Use cough drops to soothe your throat.
Gargle with warm salt water regularly to remove mucus and soothe your throat.
Avoid irritants, including smoke and dust.
Add honey or ginger to hot tea to relieve your cough and clear your airway.
Use decongestant sprays to unblock your nose and ease breathing.
Check out more cough remedies here.
Medical care
Typically, medical care will involve your doctor looking down your throat, listening to your cough, and asking about any other symptoms.
If your cough is likely due to bacteria, your doctor will prescribe oral antibiotics. You’ll usually need to take the medication for a week to fully cure the cough. They may also prescribe either expectorant cough syrups or cough suppressants that contain codeine.
If your doctor can’t find a cause for your cough, they may order additional tests. This could include:
a chest X-ray to assess whether your lungs are clear
blood and skin tests if they suspect an allergic response
phlegm or mucus analysis for signs of bacteria or tuberculosis
It’s very rare for a cough to be the only symptom of heart problems, but a doctor may request an echocardiogram to ensure that your heart is functioning correctly and isn’t causing the cough.
Difficult cases may require additional testing:
CT scan. A CT scan offers a more in-depth view of the airways and chest. It can be useful when determining the cause of a cough.
Esophageal pH monitoring. If the CT scan doesn’t show the cause, your doctor may refer you to a gastrointestinal specialist or a pulmonary (lung) specialist. One of the tests these specialists may use is esophageal pH monitoring, which looks for evidence of GERD.
In cases where the previous treatments are either not possible or extremely unlikely to be successful, or the cough is expected to resolve without intervention, doctors may prescribe cough suppressants.
What’s the outcome if left untreated?
In most cases, a cough will disappear naturally within a week or two after it first develops. Coughing won’t typically cause any long-lasting damage or symptoms.
In some cases, a severe cough may cause temporary complications such as:
tiredness
dizziness
headaches
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fractured ribs
These are very rare, and they’ll normally cease when the cough disappears.
A cough that’s the symptom of a more serious condition is unlikely to go away on its own. If left untreated, the condition could worsen and cause other symptoms.
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