Chronic cough: the allergist's perspective.
Cough is a common presenting symptom of many patients managed by allergists. For patients with chronic cough who are nonsmokers, have normal spirometry, and are not being treated with an ACE inhibitor, diagnosis usually focuses on differentiation between postnasal drip syndrome, asthma, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and nonasthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis, alone or in combination. Patients with severe COPD or GERD should be referred to appropriate specialists for those conditions. The management of conditions commonly treated by allergists (e.g., allergic rhinitis, asthma, sinusitis) follows the recommendations of current guidelines and/or practice parameters.
Spector
Sheldon L
SL
California Allergy & Asthma Medical Group, Los Angeles, CA 90025, USA. spector@allergy.com
D000293:Adolescent; D001886:Bordetella pertussis / Q000235:genetics; D002648:Child; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003371:Cough / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014917:Whooping Cough / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000382:microbiology
D004269:DNA, Bacterial