| Characteristic s of cough |
Potential significance |
| Productive |
Chronic bronchitis, lower respiratory tract infection, bronchiectasis or cancer. |
| Dry |
Infection (upper or lower respiratory tract), asthma (see Evidence Box 2) (particularly nocturnal), gastro-oesophageal reflux disease, post-nasal drip, pulmonary fibrosis, drugs (e.g. ACE-inhibitors) or cancer. |
| Bovine |
Vocal cord paralysis, potentially secondary to invasion of recurrent laryngeal nerve by lung cancer. |
| Wheezy |
Airflow limitation, e.g. asthma (see Evidence Box 2). |
