Description and Possible Medical Problems
If you have been coughing for more than a few weeks and are coughing up mucus and/or phlegm, you have a chronic, productive cough. If you have no other symptoms of a cold or flu—in which a chronic, productive cough is common—and you’re over 50 and are frequently short of breath, you may have emphysema. If you’ve been a heavy smoker for most of your life, the chances that you do have this lung disease are even greater.
Among my elderly patients, I often see frail older women who smoked two packs of cigarettes a day for many years and who now have a chronic productive cough. Many times, they will also be short of breath.
Emphysema is the most common cause of a chronic productive cough. The emphysema can occur as a result of either long-term cigarette smoking or long-term bouts with chronic bronchitis.
Treatment
If you have a chronic, productive cough and are diagnosed with emphysema, your doctor will treat you with a bronchodilator and various sprays.
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