Sputum white for cough: causes and treatment

Such a symptom of a disease as a cough is known to every person. It appears almost always when an inflammatory process develops in the body. To treat it it is necessary long and tiresomely, and its consequences in the form of a dry infrequent cough can be observed still during 6 weeks after recovery. Quite often the cough is accompanied by such an unpleasant and annoying "neighbor" as sputum. When it appears, you must definitely consult a doctor, as it can be a symptom of a rather serious and dangerous disease.

Cough and phlegm

So, what is cough and phlegm? Why do they arise and is there any relationship between these processes?

Cough itself is simply a reflex act, in which foreign particles and sputum are extracted from the respiratory tract.

Sputum is a secret that is produced by the bronchi and trachea.

Allocation of mucus is a completely normal process. It occurs in the respiratory tract and is designed to protect the bronchi and lungs from ingress of foreign particles, dust and all that can cause the inflammatory process.

In addition, mucus is a real "piggy bank" of cells of the immune system that are able to fight disease-causing bacteria.

Therefore, the daily allocation of mucus is considered an absolutely normal process and does not require treatment. The appearance of a cough accompanied by sputum should be regarded as the first "bell" of the inflammatory process in the body.

Both cough and sputum are caused by the appearance of certain irritants of the respiratory tract. Depending on the pathology and course of the disease, cough and sputum may be altered. So, cough from dry, unproductive can turn into wet. Sputum can change its color and consistency. It is important to know that it is the type of sputum that is important in establishing the focus of the disease and the appointment of treatment, taking into account the color of the secretions from the respiratory organs.

Types of sputum

The sputum produced during coughing has a different consistency: it can be thick, viscous or liquid. For example, viscous sputum appears with a disease such as pneumonia. But the inflammatory processes in the respiratory tract make phlegm from viscous to liquid. In this case, its viscosity directly depends on the total amount of mucus in it.

Depending on the type of disease, sputum can change its color and composition. So, it can be:

- green or yellow-green (appears with pneumonia, bronchitis, influenza - accompanied by a dry cough that quickly turns into a cough with sputum, sputum may contain minor purulent impurities);

- transparent (for example, with asthma - accompanied by wheezing and dry cough, thick mucous discharge can form ) ;

- bloody (with crayfish and swelling of the lungs - a cough, in which sputum contains blood veins and pus, and cough becomes chronic in this case);

- bright red (with a mild infarction - accompanied by a painful cough and sputum with red blood spots);

- yellowish-brown (with abscess of the lungs - accompanied by a painful cough, in which sputum can be traced blood clots and purulent small lumps);

- white (with fungal lesions of the lungs - accompanied by a cough, in which the phlegm can have purulent inclusions).

Was transparent, and became white

Slime, which is secreted by the lungs and bronchi, is initially transparent. The existing impurities add a certain color to the phlegm. If the sputum is white - it means that it has such extraneous connections as:

- fungal pathogen in respiratory organs;

- Kurshman's spiral.

In the first case, there is an atypical pneumonia, in which foamy sputum gets its white color due to white lumps. The more these clots, the more intense the color of sputum.

Kurshman spirals are white corkscrew formations. Similar sputum accompanies an allergic or infectious cough.

Thus, sputum white can accompany only a limited range of diseases. At the same time, only a qualified medical officer can make an accurate diagnosis.

It is important to know that changing color is always accompanied by additional symptoms. Among the similar should be attributed:

Chest pain;

- Loss of appetite;

- rales in the process of breathing;

- shortness of breath;

- Complication of breathing in general.

These symptoms never appear in the human body just like that. Their appearance should alert the patient and encourage him to go to a specialist as soon as possible.

What is white sputum?

Slime, formed in the lungs and bronchi, initially has no color. The appearance of this or that color occurs under the influence of various impurities. So, what does white sputum say?

Sputum white with a cough is a clear sign that too much mucus has accumulated in the airways. This mucus is formed due to the development of a certain disease. Thick white sputum when coughing indicates the presence of a cold in the body, an allergic reaction (for example, dust or chemical vapors), pneumonia, asthma or bronchitis.

Sputum white, having a curd consistency, indicates that there is a fungus in the respiratory organs. Also, such sputum may indicate tuberculosis.

Sputum white may also contain small bloody fibers. Most often this indicates a pulmonary complication that appears due to damage to the laryngeal vessels during a cough.

Thus, white sputum when coughing (especially in large quantities) is a clear sign of the development of one of the following diseases:

- pulmonary edema ;

- Chronical bronchitis;

- asthma;

- viral infections of the respiratory tract (tuberculosis).

Sputum is, but there is no coughing

There is also such that constantly tormenting cough as such is absent, and the person for a long time continues to torment white sputum when coughing. The reasons for this are increased production of the transebronchial secretion or a violation of its excretion. These reasons can arise because of the following pathologies:

- Acute and chronic sinusitis (thick white sputum accumulates in the throat and flows down the nasopharynx, cough is absent);

- pharyngitis and all possible forms of the course of this disease (with these ailments - sputum white or transparent, the patient suffers constant perspiration in the throat, sometimes a rare dry cough may occur);

- chronic tonsillitis (this disease occurs because of the presence of fungal infection in the body: the disease is accompanied by a congestion of white mucus in the throat, as well as the appearance of a deposit on the tonsils, the course of the disease is accompanied by a sharp unpleasant odor from the mouth and a constant sense of presence of a foreign object in the throat);

- Sjogren's syndrome (this pathology occurs as a result of the destruction of salivary and lacrimal cells, the oral cavity dries up, which causes the patient to have a false sensation of the presence of clots in the throat of sputum);

- problems with the cardiac system (these diseases are almost always accompanied by stagnation in the lungs and the formation of mucus in the throat) ;

- Allergy (direct contact with the allergen promotes irritation of the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract, which is the reason that sputum is formed white, and in some cases, transparent).

Cough with foamy phlegm

Sometimes, when coughing, white foamy sputum appears. The reasons for its appearance are various ailments, including infectious ones. Most often, such sputum is accompanied by serious health problems.

Cough with frothy white sputum may appear with senile changes in the body. This is due to the fact that because of age, the lungs lose the former opportunity to perform self-cleaning. In this regard, in the airways there is a conglomeration of foamy sputum.

Similar sputum may also appear due to coronary heart disease. This disease is accompanied by a protracted cough with an abundant release of foamy sputum.

Often, white sputum when coughing occurs due to pleurisy and pneumothorax, as well as due to overdose with some medicines, radiation damage to the respiratory tract.

However, the most common reason for the appearance of foamy white sputum when coughing is the lung abscess. This disease is extremely serious and is accompanied by a painful cough, in which a large amount of this sputum appears. Moreover, it has a very unpleasant smell. In most cases, before the release of phlegm, purulent mucus is removed from the respiratory tract.

Sometimes it happens

In some cases, cough and sputum can accompany a person for several months. In this case, no other symptoms of the disease, other than those indicated, does not appear. That is, a person does not get fever, nothing hurts, he feels well and does not experience any indisposition.

Cough with white sputum without temperature can occur for the following reasons:

- Smoking;

- an allergic reaction to certain pathogens;

- venereal diseases;

- ingress of foreign particles into the lungs;

- intoxication of the body with harmful substances, their penetration into the respiratory organs;

- Effects of ticks;

- heart failure.

In all these cases, patients develop excessive amounts of mucus. Sometimes it is produced up to 1.5 liters. Naturally, such an amount of sputum can not be swallowed (and even dangerous). Therefore, white viscous sputum when coughing (without temperature) begins to come out.

When sputum appears in large volumes, consult a specialist. The doctor after a detailed examination of the patient can assign sputum analysis for the presence of any infections, fungal or bacterial damage, as well as an analysis of the causative agent of a specific disease.

In addition, to establish a more accurate picture of the disease, experts in the field of medicine often appointed radiography and other specifying diagnostic methods.

How to treat?

There are many ways to get phlegm. It is possible to get rid of annoying sputum and with the help of medicines and inhalations. You can also resort to folk methods, herbal treatments and herbal infusions.

If a person is an adherent of traditional medicine, then the medical method of treatment is perfect for him. In this case, the doctor prescribes the use of expectorants, as well as drugs that reduce the viscosity of phlegm. Most often as such are mucolytic drugs based on bromhexine, ambroxol, acetylcysteine (for example, "ATSTS", "Lazolvan").

In addition, almost all such medicines are based on vegetable components: mucaltin, breastfeeding, althea syrup and the like.

There are medics in the arsenal and drugs that can bring mucus to a normal state (Ambroxol, Ascoril). Such a means regulates the viscosity of sputum: it becomes more liquid and leaves faster.

To cure a cough that accompanies sputum white, quite a part of the medicines that cause reflex action are used. The composition of such products include natural ingredients: essential oils, licorice, thermopsis. Such drugs include Gedelix, Herbion, Doctor Taise. These agents have an irritant effect on the receptors of the stomach, as a result of which the bronchial mucosa intensifies its work.

Therapeutic measures may include taking antibiotics: "Suprax", "Amoxiclav," "Doxycycline," "Flemoxin," Ampiox. "The choice of a particular drug depends on the reason for the production of sputum, which can only be established by a qualified specialist.

Accepting the wrong drugs will not only not heal, but will aggravate the situation, forcing the pathogenic bacteria to form immunity to the drugs used.

We treat ourselves

The appearance of sputum and cough require immediate medical attention. After all, only an experienced specialist will be able to conduct a comprehensive study and make an accurate diagnosis. It should be remembered that not always self-treatment leads to the desired positive effects.

However, sputum white without a cough can be "destroyed" and with the help of traditional medicine.

To get rid of sputum (the excretion of which is not accompanied by a cough) can be by inhalation. It can be carried out on the basis of such medicinal plants as essential oils or boiled potatoes. Inhalation should be carried out in the morning and evening. The duration of each procedure should not exceed 15 minutes.

You can resort to the use of warm herbal drinks. Good means are decoctions based on chamomile, linden, mother-and-stepmother and sage. These herbal infusions diluted with warm boiled water and applied in small amounts 3 times a day.

If after 3-5 days of inhalation or ingestion of herbal infusions no improvement is observed, the patient should consult a doctor.

Proponents of alternative medicine are confident in the effectiveness and tools such as:

- Kisel from the viburnum and honey;

- gruel made of egg yolks, flour, honey and butter;

- beetroot and carrot juice, in which radish juice and fresh cow milk are added;

- infusion of sage;

- lemon juice with glycerin and honey.

There are also those who try to get rid of sputum with the help of badger fat, figs with milk, lime tea, cranberry juice.

It is not necessary to resort to methods of alternative medicine, if cough and sputum are accompanied by fever and general malaise. In addition, it is worth remembering possible allergic reactions to certain components of the above funds.

Physical exercises to help

There is a certain set of physical exercises, thanks to which mucus leaves the respiratory organs of a person much faster. These exercises were called "postural drainage."

So, in order to facilitate the patient's condition, it is necessary to remove the pillow and put the patient on his back. Being in this position, he should slowly turn 45 degrees, while making powerful exhalations and sighs.

As a result of this exercise, the accumulated mucus begins to stand out much faster. After the exercise, sputum should be spit. The exercise itself, if necessary, is repeated 3-5 times.

Another option for getting rid of phlegm is the slopes in different directions. This exercise is carried out in the position on the side (at the edge of the bed). Throughout the day, you can repeat this exercise 5-6 times (each approach for 5 slopes per side).

You can also put the patient on his knees in bed. He must bend the trunk forward (6 times enough), then remain at rest for a minute. If desired, this exercise can be repeated throughout the day (but not more than 5 times).

Carrying out such a "therapeutic" gymnastics, it is worth remembering that it only helps to alleviate the patient's condition and for a short period to remove phlegm from the respiratory organs. It is impossible to be cured by gymnastics alone. Therefore, it should be carried out in conjunction with the use of medications (which will be prescribed by the attending physician).

It is worth remembering that physical exercises are best performed after consultation of a qualified specialist. Exercise is contraindicated for people suffering from increased blood pressure and coronary heart disease.

Preventive measures

Any disease is easier to prevent than treat. Therefore, the appearance of sputum can also be avoided, if not lazy and systematically take preventive measures.

So, at any time of the year it is necessary to include in your daily diet as much as possible products containing iron, magnesium and vitamin C.

During seasonal viral exacerbations, you should avoid visiting public places (or use a medical mask), and also drink a course of multivitamins. Also it is necessary to be afraid of drafts, hypothermia, stressful situations and physical overloads.

It is worth not to stay for a long time in poorly ventilated, smoky, smoky and dusty rooms.

It is important to stop smoking, because tobacco smoke is quite irritating to the respiratory tract. In this case, passive smoking is no less dangerous than active.

And, of course, it is necessary to temper your body (the morning contrast shower will be a wonderful assistant). Very useful and morning exercises.

Tempering, as a preventive measure, should be resorted to in the warm season. In winter, hardening should be carried out under the strict supervision of a specialist, because excessive cooling of the body can not only not help in the fight against the disease, but also harm.

Summarizing

Often cough accompanied by thick white sputum. The causes of its appearance can be all kinds: from smoking and intoxication of the body to lung abscess. At the same time, spitting can be accompanied by high fever and other painful symptoms. In addition, thick white sputum when coughing can stand out, at first glance, absolutely without symptoms.

In any case, the appearance of sputum requires an immediate appeal to specialists. An experienced doctor can diagnose even the color of phlegm. And additional diagnostic methods will help to establish the causative agent of the disease and the focus of the disease and take timely measures to recover the person.

It is worth remembering that any disease is easier to cure in the early stages. Therefore, if there is white sputum when coughing in adults or children - it is necessary to immediately pass the test for phlegm and seek help from a specialist.