Treatment of cough with sputum without fever in an adult

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

Cough with phlegm (productive) is a symptom that usually accompanies some diseases of the respiratory system. With its help, the bronchi are cleared of mucus, which leads to a significant relief of breathing. Treatment of cough with sputum without fever in an adult takes place only after consulting a doctor.

Causes

With the help of a cough, the body tries to remove foreign bodies from the lower respiratory organs that a person accidentally inhaled, or excess phlegm.

Sputum is a mucous substance that forms in the upper parts of the lungs, due to the development of inflammatory processes in them, most often of an infectious nature.

A cough with sputum without fever in adults can be both a variant of the norm (for example, when smoking), and a sign of the development of pathological conditions in the body.

The causes of cough with sputum without fever of a non-infectious nature include:

• Smoking. In this case, the body tries to cleanse the lungs of toxic substances that enter them along with the smoke and settle on their inner walls.
• Sexually transmitted diseases. Some of them also become the appearance of a cough with phlegm.
• Inhalation of toxic substances. When toxic substances (for example, smoke) enter the lungs from the environment, spasmodic attacks begin in them, with the help of which the body tries to push them out of the organ.
• Foreign bodies. Sometimes, when inhaling, food particles, dust, etc., accidentally enter the upper sections, which can also cause a cough with phlegm.
• Heart failure. One of the symptoms of this disease is a wet cough, not accompanied by an increase in body temperature.
• Allergic reaction. It occurs when a person comes into contact with any allergen, and does not necessarily enter the body by inhalation.

Also, the cause of the appearance of a wet cough without fever can be various diseases of the respiratory system, occurring in both acute and chronic forms.

These include:

• pulmonary infarction;
• destruction of the walls of the bronchi of an infectious and inflammatory nature;
• malignant neoplasms in the tissues of the lungs;
• pulmonary edema;
• anthrax;
• tracheitis;
• bronchial asthma;
• pneumonia;
• tuberculosis;
• bronchitis;
• abscesses in the tissues of the lungs;
• cystic fibrosis;
• sinusitis.

Other causes of a wet cough without fever include:

• prolonged stay in a room with dry air;
• psychological problems;
• diseases of the digestive system;
• helminthiasis.

More rare cases of phlegm coughing include dust mites, which can be found in bedding (especially stuffed with cotton or feathers), carpets, books, and other dusty areas.

Types of sputum

To determine how to treat a cough with sputum without fever in an adult, a laboratory study of the separated mucus is mandatory.

The therapy will be selected taking into account not only the cause that triggered the development of a wet cough, but also the consistency and color of the sputum.

Sputum can be:

• Brownish (rusty) hue, which is a clear sign of tuberculosis or croupous pneumonia.
• With a strong unpleasant odor.
• Foamy.
• A reddish or transparent color with streaks of blood may be a sign of a cough that is too intense, causing the capillaries to burst. But most often bloody sputum is a sign of the development of serious diseases in the lungs (tuberculosis, malignant tumors, pulmonary infarction, and others).
• Sticky, thick, yellowish green or yellow in color. This is a clear sign of the presence of pus in the sputum, which is most typical for infections of a bacterial nature.
• Very viscous, pearl shade. This type of sputum can be an indicator of the development of inflammatory processes in the lungs and bronchi or an allergic reaction. Quite often, such phlegm occurs in smokers, but with prolonged smoking it changes its color and becomes gray or black.

A moderate separation of sputum of a whitish-pearl hue is considered a sign of the norm, since even in an absolutely healthy person, mucus is formed in the bronchi. With its help, the usual cleaning of the respiratory tract occurs.

Treatments for a productive cough

In order to find out how to treat a cough with sputum without fever in an adult, you first need to consult a doctor. He will prescribe a series of necessary examinations to establish the exact cause of the development of the symptom and determine the most appropriate therapy.

It is important to remember that it is impossible to treat a cough with phlegm on your own even at normal body temperature, since it can be a sign of serious diseases that occur in a latent form.

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Medicines

In the treatment of wet cough, drugs with expectorant and mucolytic properties are necessarily used. These drugs include the following substances:

• organic acids;
• tannins;
• polysaccharides;
• glycosides and many others.

In total, there are several forms of medicines for cough with phlegm:

• pills;
• suppositories;
• syrups;
• capsules.

The most effective expectorant drugs include:

• Codelac Broncho;
• Pectusin;
• Mukaltin;
• Dr. Mom;
• Ascoril;
• Amtersol.

The best mucolytic agents are:

• Bronchorus;
• Ambrobene;
• Orvis broncho;
• Mukopront;
• Bronhoverin and other drugs containing ambroxol.

During pregnancy and lactation, medications are used for treatment that do not have a harmful effect on the child. These include:

• in the 1st trimester - Althea syrup, Mukaltin, Phytopectol, elixir and Bronchicum drops;
• in the 2nd trimester - Pectusin, Vicks active balm;
• in the 3rd trimester - marshmallow root syrup, Phlegamin, Flavamed.

During the period of gestation and lactation, only a doctor should prescribe medications, since he must take into account the possible risk to the body of the woman and the child.

External drugs

Also, warming ointments are used as an aid for a wet cough without fever.

The most effective external remedies include:

• Turpentine ointment;
• Dr. Mom;
• Propolis ointment;
• Teraflu;
• Weeks;
• Star;
• Brion's ointment;
• Gerpferon.

All of the above have a different degree of effect on the body, depending on the constituent components.

Inhalation

Inhalation is also used to treat productive coughs that are not complicated by fever.

There are several ways to treat an adult cough without fever using inhalation. These include:

• breathing over hot steam from a decoction of medicinal herbs that relieve inflammation, improve sputum discharge and have a softening effect;
• hardware treatment with inhalers for home use.

When carrying out the procedure, it is imperative to observe a number of the following rules:

• conduct a session 1 hour before or after a meal;
• the duration of the procedure should be 10-15 minutes;
• inhale only with your mouth;
• exhalation should follow in 1-2 seconds;
• if a coughing attack occurs, do not stop the procedure (you must clear your throat and continue to the end);
• at the end of the session, it is advisable to lie down for 15-20 minutes.

The need and type of inhalation is determined only by the attending physician. It is not recommended to prescribe such a procedure on your own, as the airways warm up during it. With hidden inflammatory processes in them, the body temperature may rise.

Outcomes

If you have a productive cough that is uncomplicated by fever, you should seek medical attention. What to do and how to properly treat it can only be determined by a qualified specialist after laboratory tests.