Patient's question:
Detailed medical condition and consultation purpose: My baby has had a cough for over a month now. We have seen both Western and traditional Chinese medicine doctors, but there has been no improvement. We have taken many medications and given many injections, but the cough has not gone away.Current general condition: The cough is accompanied by phlegm that cannot be expelled, and it is not continuous—sometimes there is a cough, and sometimes there isn’t. When there is a cough, it comes in short bursts.
History of diagnosis and treatment, as well as effectiveness: The treatment has not been effective after multiple attempts.
Other: Could you please tell me what type of cough this is and how to determine it?
Doctor's answer:
Hello: Cough in children can be divided into two types: external pathogenic cough and internal injury cough.External pathogenic cough can be further classified into two patterns:
① Wind-cold cough (characterized by frequent coughing at the onset, itchy throat, heavy voice, thin and white sputum, accompanied by nasal congestion, runny nose, aversion to cold, no sweating, fever, headache, and thin white tongue coating; treatment uses dispelling wind-cold and ventilating the lung method, over-the-counter medications such as Jieji Ningsou Wan);
② Wind-heat cough (characterized by unsatisfactory cough, thick and sticky sputum that is difficult to expectorate, thirst, sore throat, nasal discharge of turbid sputum, or accompanied by fever, headache, aversion to wind, slight sweating, red tongue with thin yellow coating; treatment uses dispersing wind and clearing the lung method, over-the-counter medications such as Xia'er Kuaqin Ling Chongji, Jian'er Qingjie Ye).
Internal injury cough can be further classified into three patterns:
① Phlegm-dampness cough (characterized by excessive coughing with white and thin sputum, stuffy chest, poor appetite, fatigue and lethargy, and white greasy tongue coating; treatment uses resolving phlegm and drying dampness method, over-the-counter medications such as Erzhi Keli);
② Phlegm-heat cough (characterized by excessive coughing with thick and sticky sputum that is difficult to expectorate, thirst, flushed face and red lips, restlessness, poor appetite, constipation, yellow urine, red tongue with thick yellow coating; treatment uses clearing the lung and resolving phlegm method, over-the-counter medications such as Erzhi Qingfei Koufuye);
③ Yin-deficiency dry cough (characterized by dry cough without sputum, or small amounts of sticky sputum that is difficult to expectorate, thirst, dry throat, itchy throat with hoarse voice, heat in palms and soles, or afternoon fever, red tongue with few coating; treatment uses nourishing yin and moisturizing dryness method).