The 100-day cough
Have you got or had the 100-day cough? Literally!
Irritating cough, sometimes with a wheeze or whoop, and it keeps coming back…again and again.
I am getting an increasing number of patients, predominantly aged 60+, who have the “100 day cough”.
A cursory wander through NHS web pages tells me that the 100 day cough is essentially whooping cough.
Whooping cough can affect anyone of any age.
The main symptom is bouts of intense coughing. In between bouts of coughing you can be perfectly well. Sometimes hours go by between bouts of coughing. Whooping cough can be a distressing illness which usually lasts several weeks.
Full recovery is usual but serious complications occur in some cases.
Whooping cough is uncommon in children in the UK, mainly due to immunisation. However, some adults and older children get whooping cough because the effect of whooping cough immunisation can lessen over time in some people.
What is whooping cough?
Whooping cough is a highly contagious infection caused by the bacterium) Bordetella pertussis, especially in the first 3 weeks of the disease. Whooping cough is also called ‘pertussis’. The bacterium attaches to cells which line the airways. It then multiplies and causes the symptoms.
SYMPTOMS are:
At first there is often a “common cold” and maybe a sore throat. Within a day or so a mild, dry cough develops. You may also have a runny nose. Most people do not have a high temperature (fever). Over a few days the cough may become more productive with some phlegm (sputum).
Around 7-14 days from the start of the illness, the cough usually worsens and becomes paroxysmal. This means there are bouts (paroxysms) of intense coughing. The average is about 12-15 bouts per day but some people have up to 100 per day. This stage can last about 2 weeks.
The bouts of coughing then ease gradually over a period which can last up to three months or more. (In some countries whooping cough is known as the cough of a hundred days.) As things seem to be easing, you may still have the odd bout of severe coughing.
Whooping cough can be very miserable, as the bouts of coughing can be distressing. However, in some cases the symptoms are milder than described above. In fact other than when you have a coughing bout you can feel OK.
During a bout of coughing, you repeatedly cough over and over again. The face often goes red and the body becomes tense. Eventually, there is a desperate attempt to breathe in, which may cause a high-pitched whoop sound. The whoop sound at the end of a bout of coughing only happens in about half of cases, if that. Each bout of coughing typically lasts 1-2 minutes. It can be exhausting.
Complications of whooping cough
Obviously not everyone gets these but its something to look out for..
Pneumonia
Burst blood vessels eg nosebleed,
Sore ribs from the shaking
Hernia
How to treat whooping cough
Antibiotics in the initial three weeks only unless another infection is detected after a swab test
Stay hydrated – little and frequent sips of water – warm tends to help
Sitting positions are better than lying down, incl leaning forwards as there is more rib movement and lung function available
OSTEOPATHY CAN HELP – by helping to support the bodies own immune system with respiratory techniques
Advice about food and pre and probiotics if pharmaceuticals have been used – these restore gut function – an important part of the immune response.
Cranial Osteopathy offers a few specialised techniques that seem to help recovery
High dose Vitamin C – ! speak to Gayle before taking this course of action !
Zinc supplementation
Vitamin D supplementation
N-acetyl cysteine supplementation (NAC) – loosen thick mucus in individuals with chronic bronchopulmonary disorders like pneumonia and bronchitis.
So – if your cough has been going on and on, and antibiotics are making no headway – BOOK AN APPOINTMENT today for a general service and boost for your lungs.
If you have found this article useful – please – share it with your friends or onto social media. Folks really need to know! Thanks.
© Gayle Palmer Living Elements Clinic, February 2024
