Sputum production in chronic cough increases the probability of asthma: a cross-sectional questionnaire study

Koskela, Heikki; Lätti, Anne M

doi:10.1183/23120541.00086-2021

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 16 publications

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“…Asthma, as one of the most common background disorders of cough, predicted repeated visits both in the elderly and in younger adults [ 4 ]. As sputum production is associated with both bronchiectasis and asthma [ 16 ], chronic phlegmy respiratory diseases seem to increase the cough-related healthcare burden. Both conditions are also characterised by exacerbations which are often treated with prescription drugs, and this may partly explain their associations with repeated visits.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Healthcare-Seeking Behaviour Due to Cough in Finnish Elderly: Too Much and Too Little

Kaulamo

Lätti

Koskela

2023

Lung

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Introduction Cough-related healthcare-seeking has not been studied specifically in the elderly, although chronic cough is most prevalent among them. We studied the frequencies and predictors of any (≥ 1) and repeated (≥ 3) doctor’s visits due to any cough episode during the past year, and due to the current cough episode. Methods This was a cross-sectional email survey among a Finnish community-based elderly population. Participants with current cough and age ≥ 64 years were included in the analyses (n = 1109). Results The proportions of participants with ≥ 1 and ≥ 3 cough-related doctor’s visits during the past year were 25.9% and 7.1%, respectively. Repeated visitors accounted for 55.9% of the visits during the past year. These visits first increased with cough duration but decreased after 5 years. In the multivariate analysis, bronchiectasis [aOR 3.22 (CI95% 1.08–9.58)], asthma [2.62 (1.56–4.40)], chronic sputum production [1.61 (0.94–2.76)], low self-assessed health status [1.40 (1.04–1.88)] and Leicester Cough Questionnaire total score [1.34 per tertile (1.10–1.62)] predicted repeated cough-related doctor’s visits during the past year. The proportions of ≥ 1 and ≥ 3 doctor’s visits due to current cough were 31.8% and 15.5%, respectively. Among participants with current chronic cough, 60.1% had not visited a doctor. Conclusion A minority of participants accounted for most of the cough-related doctor’s visits during the past year, whereas most participants with chronic cough had never sought medical help for it. The heavy healthcare users were not those with the longest cough episodes. Repeated visitors due to cough were characterised by chronic phlegmy respiratory conditions, and quality-of-life impairment.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%