What Is The Best Treatment For Intense Dry Cough Associated With Sore Throat?

Posted on Sat, 14 Dec 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sat, 14 Dec 2013 Answered on

Thu, 2 Jan 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : After completing the antibiotic course(PENICILLIN V 500mg (1*3) for 10 days) and CHERATUSSIN AC ,My wife was having intense cough tonight had to give hot water and steam inhalation to get a little relief and go to sleep; I am worried about the dry cough intensifying as she has had upper respiratory infections before, associated with Sore throat. writing down the diagnosis and treatment history for the last 10 days, Any advice on this is highly helpful.

Answered by Dr. Rakesh Madhyastha (1 hour later)

Brief Answer: Pharyngitis Detailed Answer: Hello Thanks for the query I have gone through the excellent history given by you and here are my suggestions 1. Pharyngitis causes cough and it usually takes about 3 to 5 weeks for it to subside completely 2. However in this case the cough has recurred and this seems to be like a recurrence after stopping the antibiotics, I strongly recommend you to get a chest x ray to rule out pneumonia and complete blood count to know if the infection is still persisting. If there is any phlegm at all i recommend you to give it for culture 3. I also recommend you not to use Cheratussin as it contains codeine which is a cough suppressant, in a setting of an infective eitology it might worsen it by inhibiting the cough reflex ( which is protective as it brings the bacteria out), lozenges like strepsils should be used instead 4. Watch out for fever 5. Avoid cold food and beverages, keep the patient warm at all times 6. Avoid milk, milk products and spicy food items I hope I was of help, if you have any further queries please get back to me Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar