Cough is a sudden and often repetitively occurring defense reflex of respiratory system which helps to clear the large breathing passages from excess secretions, irritants, foreign particles and microbes. Dry cough is most common in all the age groups than productive cough. When the cough doesn’t contain sputum or mucus is called as dry cough. Number of factors causes dry cough and treating the causes of dry cough relieves the symptoms of dry cough.

The cough reflex consists of three phases

An inhalation,

A forced exhalation against a closed glottis, and

A violent release of air from the lungs following opening of the glottis, usually accompanied by a distinctive sound.

Respiratory disease  is the main cause of frequent or severe dry cough. Many viruses and bacteria get host to cough, and hosting of bacteria in sputum or cough helps to spread the disease to new hosts. Coughing is classified as acute (of sudden onset)  sub acute (present between three to eight weeks), and chronic dry cough (lasting longer than eight weeks). A cough can be dry cough or productive cough, depending on sputum is coughed up or not.

Respiratory tract infection: Upper respiratory tract infection is the most common cause of acute dry cough. Dry cough can be triggered by entering of food into windpipe instead of going to esophagus due to a failure of the epiglottis in patients who have swallowing difficulties. Smoking and air pollution are common causes of dry cough. The common causes of chronic cough or dry cough are asthma, gastro esophageal reflux disease and post-nasal drip. Other causes of dry cough or chronic cough include chronic bronchitis, heart failure and medications such as ACE inhibitors.

Symptoms of dry cough

Dry cough causes the symptoms such as uneasiness, chest congestion, sore throat, body pain. The major symptoms of dry cough are, pain in body parts, sore throat, fever and headache, common cold, disturbed sleeping, problem in breathing and uneasiness may be associated with dry cough. Dry cough remedies are used for cough treatment.

Causes of dry cough are

• Upper respiratory tract infection
• Some allergic substances such as pet dander, Smoke, pollens in the air, dust and some chemicals causes allergic cough and is dry cough.
• Sudden entry of cold air to airway tract causes dry cough.
• Entry of allergic substances to airway tract.
• Pharyngitis or throat infection also causes dry cough.
• Common cold and viral fever may cause dry cough.
• Patients works in occupational industries such as cement factories, dust producing works have much risk to get dry cough.
• Heart disease,
• Lung cancer,
• Asthma,
• Viral infection, flu and
• Sinus infection
• These are the main causes of dry cough.

Medications used for treatment of dry cough

Since cough is a natural protective reflex, suppressing the cough reflex might have deleterious effects, especially if the cough is productive. Treatment of dry cough should be targeted towards the cause of dry cough, such as smoking cessation and discontinuing ACE inhibitors. Cough relief is given with antibiotics; cough mixtures, and home remedies.

• Amoxicillin with clavulanic acid is the best drug for treatment of dry cough.

• Erythromicin, Roxythromycin and Azithromycin are very good drugs for treating dry cough.

• Cephalosporins are the best choice of drugs, helps lot in treatment of gram negative infections and gram positive infections of upper respiratory tract. Cefixime, cepodoxime and cefuroxime are recommended drugs for dry cough treatment.

• Codeine and chlorpheniramine  are the drugs used to suppress dry cough related to allergy.

Home remedies for dry cough, Dry cough treatment

• Elevate the cause of dry cough such as allergic substances,
• Avoid entering of cold air into airway tract,
• Don’t mingle with a dry cough infected person,
• Get cough treatment with cough mixtures with ambroxol,
• Steam inhalation is a good remedy for dry cough treatment: Get a hot water in the bowl and add menthos to it. Cover the steam with a cloth over your head and inhale the steam. Steam inhalation is the good cough treatment and dry cough remedy.
• Almond paste mixed with honey is a good dry cough remedy. Take 8-9 almond seeds and soak them in water, and make almond paste after peeling off upper skin of the almond seeds, Add honey and give it to cough patient for dry cough remedy.
• Turmeric powder is a good dry cough remedy and science has proved that turmeric powder is beneficial for the cancer patients also. Turmeric powder is one among remedies for dry cough and helps in cough relief.
• Onion plays an important role in treatment of cough. The juice extracted from finely chopped onion helps in loosening the cough and is a better dry cough remedies.
• Ginger is one of the most used and effective home remedies for dry cough and helps in cough relief.
• Give a warm milk by adding six to eight pieces of crushed pepper for dry cough remedy.
• Patient suffering from severe dry cough should be given freshly prepared orange juice. Orange is one of the most effective fruit for the treatment of cough and is among dry cough home remedies.