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Coughing is an important way to keep your throat and airways clear. However, excessive coughing may mean you have an underlying disease or disorder.

Some coughs are dry, while others are “productive.” A productive cough is one that brings up phlegm (also called sputum or mucus). Coughs can be either acute or chronic.

Besides cold and flu, other common causes of coughs include asthma; allergies (like hay fever); lung infections such as pneumonia or acute bronchitis; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema or chronic bronchitis); sinusitis leading to postnasal drip; smoking cigarettes or exposure to secondhand smoke; pollutants; and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). A cough due to a lung infection may start out suddenly but then linger on. If a child has a barking cough, see croup.

Cough - Treatment & Homeopathic Medicines

#Phosphorus [Phos]
The cough of Phosphorus arises from irritation in the trachea. It is tickling which is lower down than the irritation calling for Belladonna It is made worse by talking or using the voice; in fact, any change in breathing causes the cough. It is at first dry and tight and then with expectoration of tenacious purulent mucus. It is worse from a change to cold air, the chest feels dry, and the cough sounds and there is a constriction across the upper part of the chest. Continued hoarsensess with a distressing, dry cough. It is also a remedy for stomach or hepatic coughs, anaemic coughs, and in reflex coughs, being here similar to Ambra grisea. Ignatia is useful in nervous coughs, in which the more the patient coughs the greater the irritation to cough. Sticta has this symptom, but it is not nervous in origin. Ambra grisea is useful in nervous coughs followed by eructation of wind. Reflex coughs rather than those of organic lesions of the respiratory organs. Phosphorus follows Belladonna well. Belladonna relieves the soreness, tenderness and fever, but the hoarse, rough voice yields to phosphorus. A dry cough is an important indication for Belladonna.

#Rumex crispus [Rumex]
This remedy has a dry cough from tickling in the supra-sternal fossa. It is a laryngo-tracheal cough which is teasing and persistent, and is aggravated by cold air. The patient has to cover the head with the bedclothes and breathe warm air to stop the cough. Deep inspiration aggravates it. It suits incessant fatiguing fatiguing coughs, with soreness behind the sternum, and much tough mucus in the larynx which cannot be hawked up. It suits the night coughs of consumptives where there are sharp, stitching pains through the lungs in the early stages. Silicea has a similar cough, worse from cold drinks, worse from speaking and worse from lying down at night.

#Bryonia [Bry]
The cough of Bryonia is generally dry and concussive. It seems to come from the region of the stomach, and is preceded by a tickling in the epigastrium. During the cough the patient holds the sides of the chest with his hands, as the sough not only shakes the chest, but also hurts distant parts of the body. It is induced also by coming from the open air into a warm room and is accompanied by bursting headache. The expectoration is scanty, tough and sometimes bloody. Natrum carbonicum. Cough worse in a warm room, with a purulent salty and greenish expectoration. Asclepias tuberosa. Loose cough, with stitching pains in the chest, a looser cough than the Bryonia cough, and the patient is more "broken up" with the cold.

#Spongia [Spong]
This remedy suits a hard, barking, ringing, metallic sounding cough, which is worse from deep breathing and excitement, often arousing the patient out of sleep with a suffocative feeling. There is usually no expectoration; it suits, therefore, oftentimes the dry , racking cough of chronic bronchitis. Sambucus. Useful in suffocative coughs of children where there is rough wheezing with great dyspnoea; patient can only breathe with the mouth wide open.

#Hyoscyamus [Hyos]
The cough of this remedy is dry, nervous and spasmodic, occurs at night and ceases after sitting up. This is characteristic of the drug; the Belladonna cough may compel the patient to sit up, but no relief is obtained. Hyoscyamus is a wonderfully calming remedy in the night coughs of consumptives. Manganum has a cough that is always better on lying down, only troublesome when sitting up. Conium. This remedy has a tormenting dry cough, worse lying down, worse in the evening and at night. Speaking or laughing also aggravates the cough. The irritation is in the trachea or upper bronchi. Opium has a difficult cough, especially tormenting at night, with a scanty expectoration. Burt testifies as to its utility in dry spasmodic nightly coughs that prevent sleep, with no expectoration. Laurocerasus is a very beneficial remedy in the dry, teasing cough of consumptives. Aralia racemosa cures a spasmodic cough coming on at night after the first sleep, caused by tickling in the throat and constriction of chest; has to sit up and cough violently. Naphthalin. Dr. Cartier recommends this remedy highly in spasmodic coughs, due to an acute laryngo-tracheitis.

#Sanguinaria [Sang]
This is one of our best remedies in dry and humid coughs following inflammation. It is especially useful in the pre-tubercular stage of phthisis. Brigham says that few remedies have proved equal to Sanguinaria for bronchial coughs. It is usually a dry cough excited by tickling in the larynx and upper chest. The expectoration is rust colored and the breathe may be offensive. Again, it may have a loose cough, but the secretion of mucus is expectorated with great difficulty, here being like Kali bichromicum. Holcomb says: " It has done me more good in pulmonary diseases than any other single remedy." Almost any cough with a hectic flush and dryness of the throat will yield to Sanguinaria.

#Antimonium tartaricum [Ant-t]
With this remedy the cough sounds loose and the patient feels sure that the next cough will raise the mucus; but it does not, no phlegm is raised. There is drowsiness accompanying the cough and the dyspnoea increases. Bayes says that the 3d and 6th potencies harden the cough, but the 2x loosens it. The characteristic then are the loose cough, the rattling in the chest and the absence of expectoration. It is a convulsive, concussive cough, attended with copious secretion of mucus. It is worse at night and in bed. The expectoration when present is either lemon-yellow or blood streaked. Ipecac has a loose, rattling cough occurring with every breathe, accompanied by asthma and nausea and vomiting. As with Antimonium tartaricum, the chest seems full of mucus, but does not yield to coughing. A cough that has lasted a long time and been neglected will oftentimes be benefited by Ipecac. Hepar sulphur. The cough of Hepar is husky and hoarse, never a perfectly dry one; it has a loose edge and the patient coughs into a fit of choking. Scilla. Rattling in chest; patient coughs a long time before a little mucus is raised, which relieves.

#Kali bichromicum [Kali-bi]
This remedy has a constant metallic barking and its great characteristic is the presence of a thick tenacious mucus, which is exceedingly difficult to expectorate. It corresponds well to coughs following measles and to wearisome morning coughs where there is the difficult expectoration. These symptoms distinguish the remedy, together with its amelioration at night in bed. Kali carbonicum has a paroxysmal cough, which is violent and long continued, and after a tedious effort a small quantity of tough stringy mucus is dislodged. The cough may cause gagging and vomiting. Nitric acid. The Nitric acid cough is essentially chronic, often short and dry on first lying down at night; is accompanied by great physical depression and a stinging and smarting sensation in the larynx; there is little or no expectoration. Nux vomica is sometimes useful in short, dry and fatiguing coughs accompanied by headache and soreness in the epigastric zone. If the pharynx and fauces are affected Nux will be more especially indicated.
Mercurius is adapted to a dry cough that is passing into a moist stage after Belladonna, Bryonia, etc. Dry cough with roughness, burning feeling of rawness from fauces to sternum.

#Sticta pulmonaria [Stict]
Dr. M. D. Youngman, of Atlantic City, thus summed up the indications for Sticta in coughs: 1. It is indicated in harsh, racking, incessant, "unprofitable " cough of spasmodic type. 2. It is particularly adapted to neurotic, rheumatic, and gouty individuals. 3. It is more valuable in sub-acute and chronic cases. 4. It is most suitable to old age. 5. It allays irritation, soothes irritable tissues, removes hyper-sensitive conditions of the respiratory mucous membrane and promotes sleep. 6. He suggested it as being worthy of a trial in whooping cough.

#Lachesis [Lach]
The cough of Lachesis is dry, spasmodic, in suffocative fits, tickling at night. There is but little secretion and much sensitiveness, worse from pressure on the larynx, after sleep and in the open air. The mucus cannot be brought up it will stick there. Useful in the harassing coughs accompanying organic diseases of the heart, also Naja. Dulcamara has a spasmodic cough, with profuse secretion of mucus in the larynx and trachea, easy expectoration of tasteless mucus; the coughing spells are long and damp weather aggravates. Causticum has a dry, hollow cough,l with tightly adhering mucus in the chest, relieved by a drink of cold water, as in the nervous spasmodic cough of Cuprum. It is accompanied often times with pain in the hips, more frequently the left, and with involuntary spurting of urine. Scilla and Natrum muriaticum also have this last symptom. With Causticum the patient cannot cough deeply enough to raise the mucus, being similar to Lachesis in this sticking of the phlegm. The Causticum cough is attended with morning hoarseness. Senega is useful in coughs with profuse secretion of mucus, causing ineffectual efforts for its expulsion, though the cough is loose and rattling. Burning in the chest before or after coughing is an excellent symptoms.