Cough Flashcards
_______ is the commonest manifestation of lower
respiratory tract infection
Cough
Cough is the cardinal feature of ______
chronic bronchitis
Cough may persist for many weeks following an
acute upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) as
a result of persisting ______ or ______
bronchial inflammation and
increased airway responsiveness
______ is the commonest cause of a
persistent or chronic cough, especially causing
nocturnal cough due to secretions (mainly from
chronic sinusitis) tracking down the larynx and
trachea during sleep
Postnasal drip
The commonest causes of haemoptysis are
1
2
3
URTI (24%), acute or chronic bronchitis (17%),
bronchiectasis (13%), TB (10%).
A _______ is suggestive of cancer: the explosive
nature of a normal cough is lost when laryngeal paralysis
is present, usually resulting from bronchial carcinoma
infiltrating the left recurrent laryngeal nerve.
bovine cough
Chronic cough may be the first presentation of
_____pneumonia in an HIV-infected pt
Pneumocystis jiroveci
Red flags for cough
- Age >50 years
- Smoking history
- Asbestos history exposure
- Persistent cough
- Overseas travel
- TB exposure
- Haemoptysis
- Unexplained weight loss
- Dyspnoea
Pulmonary infiltration
with fibrosis may result from some cytotoxic drugs,
especially_______
bleomycin
Cough can be a feature of some of the ACE inhibitors
and _____,______,______
beta blockers, inhaled steroids and sulfasalazine
A typical
‘psychogenic’ cough is barking in quality—the ‘__________. It does not occur during sleep
Cape
Barren goose’ cough
Occupational list for causes of cough
mining ______
aircraft manufacturing________
farming (‘farmer’s lung’—allergic pneumonitis from mouldy hay)
and bird handling (‘bird fancier’s lung’—allergic alveolitis or psittacosis from pigeons or budgerigars
(pneumoconiosis),
(asbestosis and mesothelioma),
PE of pt with cough
_______ on auscultation indicate pulmonary oedema
of heart failure, interstitial pulmonary fibrosis and
early lobar pneumonia,
while coarse crackles indicate
_______, _______, ______
Fine crackles
resolving pneumonia, bronchiectasis and TB
Important radiologic procedures for pts with cough
— plain chest X-ray (shows many problems)
— ____________helps more precise localisation
of lesion, may show cavitation
— ________: shows bronchiectasis (a very
unpleasant procedure)
— CT scanning (more sensitive than plain X-ray)
— CT pulmonary angiogram
— ___________: for
pulmonary infarction
— echocardiogram (pulmonary hypertension)
tomography:
bronchography
ventilation/perfusion isotope scan
Character of the cough
• _________→ tracheitis and bronchitis (major
bronchi); extrinsic pressure on trachea
• __________ → laryngeal disorders (e.g. laryngitis)
Brassy
Barking
Character of the cough
• _________ → laryngeal disorders (e.g.
laryngitis, croup)
• _________ → vocal cord paralysis (leftrecurrent
laryngeal nerve)
• Weak cough → indicates bronchial carcinoma
• _______ → whooping cough
• _______→ tracheitis; left ventricular failure
Croupy (with stridor)
Bovine (no power)
Paroxysmal with whoops
Painful
Causes of nocturnal cough
— asthma — left ventricular failure — postnasal drip — chronic bronchitis — whooping cough
Causes of waking cough
— bronchiectasis
— chronic bronchitis
— GORD
cough associated with changing posture
— bronchiectasis
— lung abscess
Cough with meals
— hiatus hernia (possible)
— oesophageal diverticulum
— tracheo-oesophageal fistula
A healthy, non-smoking individual produces
approximately ______ of mucus a day
100–150 mL
This
normal bronchial secretion is swept up the airways
towards the trachea by the________
mechanism and is usually swallowed.
mucociliary clearance
The commonest cause of excess mucus production is
_______
cigarette smoking.
Character of sputum
_________ → due to cellular
material (neutrophils or eosinophil granulocytes)
_______ → lobar pneumonia ( S. pneumoniae ): due
to blood
Yellow or green (purulent)
Rusty
Character of sputum
- Profuse, watery → ______
- Thin, clear mucoid → ______
- Redcurrant jelly → ______
- Profuse and offensive →_____
alveolar cell carcinoma
viral infection
bronchial carcinoma
bronchiectasis; lung abscess
Character of sputum
Thick plugs (cast-like) → \_\_\_\_\_ • Pink frothy sputum → pulmonary oedema
allergic bronchopulmonary Aspergillus;
bronchial carcinoma
Rare causes of hemoptysis
Idiopathic pulmonary haemosiderosis
Goodpasture syndrome
Blood disorders including anticoagulants
Several clinicians describe the _______as the commonest cause of cough
catarrhal child
syndrome
This refers to children who develop a postnasal drip
following acute respiratory infection and allergic
rhinitis
catarrhal child
syndrome
Habit cough can occur in children, especially those
with a history of ______
school phobia
One study found the causes of chronic cough in the elderly to be 1 2 3
postnasal drip syndrome 48%,
gastro-oesophageal reflux 20%
and asthma 17%.
Combined URTI and LRTI include
1
2
3
influ enza, measles, whooping cough and laryngotracheobronchitis
This highly infectious URTI, which is often mistakenly
referred to as ‘the flu’, produces a mild systemic upset
and prominent nasal symptoms
The common cold (acute coryza
The
incubation period is usually 1–3 days and the illness
commences abruptly with a fever, headache, shivering
and generalised muscle aching
Influenza