Special Planning: Cough 365 Ask
Yimaitong works with clinicians from various disciplines to answer the "100,000 whys" of disease diagnosis and treatment, and provide medical guidance for patients and their families.
This issue is written by Su Yisen
Attending physician of the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine of the Second Hospital of Zhangzhou City, Fujian
Highlights of this issue
1. What is a post-infection cough?
2. Dietary therapy
3. Non-pharmacological therapies
4. Daily life care
▍Introduction
Recently, the weather is changeable, mycoplasma, influenza A, influenza B various pathogens are raging, coughing sound one after another, although after treatment, some people quickly get better, but there are still some patients are coughing endlessly, night cough, day cough, cough non-stop, cough heartbreaking, cough heartbreaking, but have taken a variety of antibiotics, cough potions have not improved.
No, recently, I met a patient Xiao Chen in the outpatient clinic, and when I came to the clinic, I told why I couldn't get better with my cough for 1 month, coughing until my ribs were about to break, azithromycin, amoxicillin, oseltamivir, ambroxol, and all kinds of cough syrups were put into battle, and they all tried it all over again, but it didn't work, and I kept coughing.
I first asked Xiao Chen to relax, and carefully looked at Xiao Chen's recent blood routine, C-reactive protein, and procalcitonin, all of which were normal. What the hell is going on, I told Xiao Chen, there is a cough called post-infection cough.
Xiao Chen then asked, "What exactly is a post-infection cough?"
▍What is post-infectious cough?
Post-infection cough refers to a cough that persists after an acute respiratory infection, and if the symptoms of the early respiratory tract infection (such as fever, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat, muscle aches) have improved significantly, but the cough still persists, this cough is called post-infection cough.
Most of them present with irritating dry cough or small amounts of white sticky sputum, which usually lasts 3 to 8 weeks and does not respond to antibiotic therapy.
Xiao Chen asked curiously: "Why do you always cough after infection?" ”
I patiently told Xiao Chen that the current pathogenesis of cough after infection is not clear, and most experts believe that the tracheal mucosa is related to the damage to the tracheal mucosa, which will induce tracheal contraction and secrete a large amount of mucus, resulting in airway hyperresponsiveness, and also sensitize the cough reflex;
After listening to this, Xiao Chen asked again: "Is there any way to treat cough after infection?"
Although post-infection cough is a self-limiting disease that usually resolves on its own, and there is currently no specific treatment in Western medicine, severe cough still requires symptomatic treatment with medication. We usually prefer antihistamines, such as chlorpheniramine and cetirizine, as well as central antitussive drugs, such as dextromethorphan, and we also try montelukast because of the increased level of leukotrienes on sputum in patients with cough after infection.
Xiao Chen immediately said: "I have used all of what you said, but I still can't stop coughing, you are a Chinese medicine practitioner, do you have any secret recipes or tricks for Chinese medicine?"
Traditional Chinese medicine pays attention to syndrome differentiation and treatment, so there is no so-called secret recipe, we can distinguish the syndrome for you through looking, hearing and asking, and the four diagnoses and references, and prescribe traditional Chinese medicine, but because everyone's condition and constitution are different, the Chinese medicine that is suitable for you may not be suitable for others, but we can teach you some small tricks.
▍Dietary therapy
1. Garlic icing syrup
Prepare 5 cloves of peeled garlic, chop the garlic finely with a knife, add 2-3 rock sugars, cover and cook for 20 minutes, if people who are sensitive to the taste of garlic can only drink boiled water, it is best to stay in the throat for a while and swallow it, the effect will be better. If you don't want to steam, boiling hot water to brew garlic and rock sugar can also be effective, which is suitable for cold patients who cough up white phlegm and runny nose.
2. White radish honey water
Peel and slice the white radish, add an appropriate amount of water to the pot, cook the radish, add honey and stir evenly after putting it warm, and eat it with the radish, the white radish honey water can clear heat and moisten the lungs, dissolve phlegm and relieve cough, suitable for patients who cough up yellow phlegm, runny yellow mucus, and sore throat.
3. Lily and pear drink
Ingredients: 1 large pear, 10 grams of lily and 10 grams of wheat winter
Method: Peel and cut the pear into pieces, put in the lily and wheat dong, add an appropriate amount of water and boil, add an appropriate amount of rock sugar after cooking, and finally eat the pear and drink water. This is suitable for patients with dry cough, little phlegm, dry throat, and dry mouth.
▍Non-drug therapy
1. Try the "Stop Coughing Exercise"
As soon as you feel the urge to cough, close your mouth, cover your mouth with your hand, swallow at the same time, hold your breath for a short while, and gently inhale and exhale through your nose when you start breathing again.
2. TCM acupuncture point recommendation
We can achieve the effect of cough suppressant by kneading the relevant acupuncture points of the body, here are three commonly used and effective acupuncture points:
Heavenly Barrel
Located in the midline of the body, put your hand in front of the neck and slide down to the depression when touching the sternum, which has the effect of promoting lung qi, eliminating phlegm and relieving cough. Use your thumb or middle finger to press and rub the acupuncture points, the strength is appropriate for the soreness, and the general massage can be combined with the swallowing action to relieve the discomfort caused by the rubbing.
Fish Cave
It is located on the radial side of the midpoint of the first metacarpal bone, at the red and white flesh, that is, the front of the palm, the base of the thumb, and the midpoint of the wrist line, which is obviously raised. It has the effect of relieving cough and phlegm, and clearing the throat. Use the thumb of the other hand to rub the thenar point with the strength of soreness.
Pulmonary pupil
Located on the back of the human body, under the spinous process of the third thoracic vertebra, 1.5 inches on the left and right, the simple acupoints are: sitting with the right hand to take the left, the left to take the right, and the position at the end of the middle finger. It has the effect of promoting the lungs and dissolving phlegm, regulating and replenishing the lung qi, and the massage strength is appropriate for soreness.
▍ Care for daily life
The diet should be light, you can choose high-protein, high-vitamin, nutritious, easy-to-digest food, avoid spicy, irritating, sweet and fatty products and caffeinated drinks, pay attention to keep warm, wear a mask, prevent another cold, and at the same time should quit smoking, avoid the stimulation of second-hand smoke and dust particles.
Experts of this issue
Dr. So Yee Sen
- Attending physician of the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine of the Second Hospital of Zhangzhou City, Fujian
- Graduated from Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, majoring in internal medicine
- At the postgraduate level, he studied under Professor Chen Shaomei of Xiamen Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine
- He specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of common diseases, chronic diseases and difficult diseases in internal medicine
Yimaitong is a professional online doctor platform, and the mission of the platform is to "sense the pulse of the world's medicine and help China's clinical decision-making". Yimaitong has a series of products such as "Clinical Guidelines", "Medication Reference", "Medical Literature King", "Yizhiyuan", "eYantong" and "ePulse", which fully meet the needs of medical workers in clinical decision-making, obtaining new knowledge and improving scientific research efficiency.