Chronic Cough
Overview
Chronic cough lasts more than 8 weeks; common causes are cough-variant asthma, upper-airway cough syndrome, gastroesophageal reflux, eosinophilic bronchitis, smoking, and medications. Chinese medicine holds that "all organs can cause cough"; chronic cough mostly involves the lung, spleen, and kidney, with patterns of phlegm-damp accumulating in the lung, phlegm-heat constraining the lung, and lung-yin deficiency. The cause should be identified first—especially smoking cessation and ruling out asthma, tuberculosis, and tumor—rather than simply suppressing cough.
Pattern differentiation (clinical patterns)
Phlegm-Damp Accumulating in the Lung
Recurrent cough with heavy sound, copious white sticky sputum, chest and epigastric oppression, poor appetite, pale tongue white greasy coating, rolling pulse.
Dry dampness and resolve phlegm; regulate qi to stop cough.
Phlegm-Heat Constraining the Lung
Coarse cough with thick yellow sputum hard to expectorate, dry mouth, sore throat, red face, possibly fever, red tongue yellow greasy coating, rolling rapid pulse.
Clear heat and resolve phlegm; clear and downbear lung qi to stop cough.
Lung-Yin Deficiency
Dry cough with scant sputum or blood-tinged sputum, short cough, dry throat/mouth, afternoon tidal fever, night sweats, weight loss, red tongue scant coating, fine rapid pulse.
Nourish yin and moisten the lung; resolve phlegm to stop cough.
Connections
Daily care & prevention
Stop smoking and avoid secondhand smoke, cooking fumes, cold air, and dry environments; hydrate and humidify indoor air; track triggers and day/night patterns; if overweight with acid reflux, raise the head of the bed and avoid food within 3 hours of bedtime. Massage Feishu (BL13), Tiantu (CV22), Danzhong (CV17), Fenglong (ST40), and Taiyuan (LU9). Cough over 8 weeks, blood in sputum, nocturnal waking with breathlessness, hoarseness, smoking history, or weight loss warrants chest imaging and lung-function tests.
When to seek medical care
Hemoptysis or blood-tinged sputum, marked dyspnea, chest pain, persistent fever, night sweats, or weight loss requires prompt evaluation to rule out tuberculosis and lung cancer; chronic cough in infants, pregnant women, and the elderly should be assessed early.