The chronic cough syndrome

Cough is a common symptom encountered in medical practice and can occur throughout the life of a person. From a physiological point of view, it represents a mechanism responsible for the elimination of secretions from the airways. At the same time, cough may be the first symptom of an illness. There are many causes that may lead to the emergence of a chronic cough syndrome, the most frequent being pulmonary diseases. Besides the bronchopulmonary pathology, there are a number of extrapulmonary disorders that may manifest with coughing. The first step in evaluating the patient with chronic cough is performing a correct and complete anamnesis, followed by the physical examination of the patient. The treatment of the chronic cough syndrome must address mainly the underlying disease but, in case of failure of the established treatment, the antitussive therapy is used.