Are You Tired of Your Chronic, Constant Cough?

If you’ve had a constant cough for what feels like forever, you’ve likely done everything you can think of to take care of it. You’ve likely seen your doctor, you’ve taken medicine, you’ve sucked on cough drops, you’ve used sprays, you’ve made changes to your environment, and still nothing helps. What gives? At this point, many people begin to work towards acceptance. At Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology Medical Group, we don’t think you should ever have to accept a cough that won’t seem to go away.

The key is to treat the cause and not the cough

Many general physicians focus on treating your symptoms and not the cause of those symptoms. This makes sense for some issues, and may make sense when you first start coughing. However, when it becomes clear that it’s not caused by a specific illness, and it won’t seem to go away, then it’s time to take a deeper long to find the source of your chronic cough.

When you visit an allergist like Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology Medical Group, our first goal will be to find what the cause of your cough is. There are many ways we can help determine the underlying cause of it, and once we do, then we can come up with a way to deal with it.

At what point do you consult with an allergist about a cough?

Most of the time, the cause of a cough is pretty simple: A short-term bug. We don’t suggest that you call us the moment you start coughing but we also don’t want you to suffer for months and months when we could help. Generally speaking, if you’ve been coughing regularly for eight or more weeks then your cough is considered chronic and it is appropriate to seek medical attention.

Most causes of chronic coughs are related to asthma or allergies

Many of our patients are surprised to learn that the most common reason a person develops a chronic cough is because they’re having issues with either allergy or asthma. This is particularly true for patients who’ve had issues like wheezing, heartburn, and nasal drip.

How an allergist can help with your chronic cough

When you come to Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology Medical Group, you’ll be working with allergists who are truly experts in diagnosing and treatment chronic coughs that are related to allergies / asthma. Depending on your particular needs, we can start by performing tests that will diagnose asthma, or tests that will identify allergies like hay fever. We can also test to find out if the cough is related to acid reflux.

Once we’ve determined what’s causing your cough, we’ll create a treatment plan that’s personalized to your exact needs. We take into account medications you’re on, risk factors you have, and other issues before starting on a plan. To learn more, or to schedule your appointment for allergy and / or asthma testing, call Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology Medical Group at 805-658-9500 right away.