[Recent advances in neuropharmacology of the centrally acting antitussive drugs]

Although cough is a useful physiological mechanism serving to clear the respiratory passage of fereign material and excess secretions, there are many situations in which cough does not serve any useful purpose but may only annoy the patient or prevent rest and sleep. In such cases physician should use antitussive drugs. A number of opioid and nonopioid drugs are known to reduce coughs as a result of their central actions. However, the exact mechanisms responsible for these antitussive drugs are not entirely clear. In this article, the author reviewed the recent advances of the neuropharmacology of the centrally acting antitussive drugs. Furthermore, the possible role of opioid receptor types in the regulation of the cough reflex was also discussed.