Epidemiology of cough in relation to China

Abstract

Cough is one of the most common complaints for which patients seek medical attention. Misdiagnosis and mistreatment of cough exist commonly in China. The prevalence of acute cough caused by upper airway infection fluctuates between 9% and 64% in the community, for chronic cough, the prevalence >10% in most surveys, ranging from 7.2%-33%. The common causes of chronic cough are upper airway cough syndrome (previously called as post nasal drip syndrome [PNDS]), cough variant asthma (CVA), gastroesophageal reflux related cough (GERD) and eosinophilic bronchitis (EB). There is a regional discrepancy regarding the prevalence of common causes of cough and distribution of gender among China, UK, USA, the most common cause of chronic cough in China are CVA, followed by UACS, EB and atopic cough (AC), the male is almost equal to female in numbers in China. The risk factors for cough includes cold air, smoking, environmental pollutants, noxious substances and allergens, and unreasonable diet habits.

The burden of segregated respiratory diseases in India and the quality of care in these patients: Results from the Asia-Pacific Burden of Respiratory Diseases study

“…[28] Healthcare resource utilization is substantial with estimates indicating patients with chronic cough account for 10–38% of respiratory outpatients and the average number of visits to a medical service >20 per patient. [2930] Given the frequency of concomitant respiratory conditions reported in this study the presence of cough, particularly in AR and rhinosinusitis, may act as a key signaling symptom to prompt further investigation for more serious disorders such as COPD and asthma, and initiate early and appropriate treatment interventions.…”

Hospital out-and-in-patients as Functions of Trace Gaseous Species and Other Meteorological Parameters in Chiang-Mai, Thailand

“…2A). Although respiratory diseases can arise from numerous causes, including inhalation of toxic trace gaseous species, smoking habits and socioeconomic status, it seems reasonable to ascribe viral infections as the principal cause of the high Female-OPD found on July 15, 2009 during the rainy season (Cohen et al, 2013;Etemadi et al, 2013;Lai et al, 2013).…”

Chronic cough: clinical characteristics and etiologies of 510 cases

“…In China, the percentage distribution of the CC etiologies varies from that in foreign countries, possibly since misdiagnosis and mistreatment of cough are common in China. The common causes of CC are UACS (previously called PNDS), CVA, GERC, and EB; the most common cause of CC in China is CVA, which accounts for 33% of the CC cases, followed by UACS, EB, and atopic cough (AC) (17,18); EB is also a common cause, accounting for 13.2%-24% of CC cases (19). However, GERC is not as common in China as it is in Western countries.…”