Managing patients with chronic cough: challenges and solutions

Chronic cough is a common complaint and a frequent cause of medical consultation. Its management can be difficult. We present here an overview of the current guidelines for the management of chronic cough. Different steps are detailed, including the initial research of an obvious etiology and alert signs that should lead to further investigation of underlying condition. The diagnosis of the most frequent causes: asthma, non-asthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis, gastroesophageal reflux disease and upper airway cough syndrome should be considered, assessed and treated accordingly. Recent advances have been made in the comprehension of refractory chronic cough pathophysiology as well as its pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment, especially speech pathology therapy.