Respiratory and sleep medicine
Chronic cough with or without sputum
Cough over 8 weeks in adults, the CXR and spirometry baseline, red flags, the treatable traits (asthma, eosinophilic bronchitis, reflux, rhinosinusitis, ACE inhibitors), wet cough and refractory cough hypersensitivity.
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Written with AI assistance and fact-checked against the sources below. For exam study, not clinical decisions. How notes are made
At a glance
- Chronic cough in adults is cough lasting more than 8 weeks. Most patients have one or more treatable traits: asthma or eosinophilic bronchitis, upper airway disease, reflux, or a drug.
- Chest X-ray and spirometry are the baseline for every adult. The Australian CICADA statement (2024) and ERS 2020 agree on this.
- Sort early into dry versus wet (productive) cough. A daily wet cough points to suppurative lung disease such as bronchiectasis or COPD, not reflux.
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Sources
- Cough in children and adults: diagnosis, assessment and management (CICADA). Summary of an updated position statement on chronic cough in AustraliaAU/NZLung Foundation Australia and Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand (Medical Journal of Australia), 2024
- ERS guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of chronic cough in adults and childrenEuropean Respiratory Society (European Respiratory Journal, Morice et al), 2020
- Treatment of unexplained chronic cough: CHEST guideline and expert panel reportAmerican College of Chest Physicians (CHEST, Gibson et al), 2016
- National Lung Cancer Screening ProgramAU/NZAustralian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, 2025
- Camlipixant CALM-1 and CALM-2 phase III results in refractory chronic cough (company announcement)GSK, July 2026
- Last updated
- 14 November 2026
What changed
- 14 November 2026 Personal emails, About story and Australian-style copy