Prim Care Respir J, 2013 Aug 21. pii: pcrj-2013-03-0039-R1
BACKGROUND:
Persistent post-infectious cough (PPC) is a cough that
remains after a common cold or an upper respiratory tract infection for more
than three weeks or perhaps for many months. Two of the suggested treatments
for PPC are systemic steroid and honey plus coffee.
AIMS:
The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare scientifically
the therapeutic effects of these two regimens.
METHODS::
A double-blind randomised controlled trial was conducted
from 2008 to 2011 at the Baqiyatallah University Hospital, Tehran, Iran.
Included in the study were 97 adults who had experienced PPC for more than
three weeks. Patients with other causes of chronic cough, systemic disease, or
abnormal routine laboratory tests were excluded. The participants were
distributed into three groups. A jamlike paste was prepared which consisted of
honey plus coffee for the first group ('HC'), prednisolone for the second group
(steroid, 'S'), and guaifenesin for the third group (control, 'C'). The
participants were told to dissolve a specified amount of their product in warm
water and to drink the solution every eight hours for one week. All the
participants were evaluated before treatment and one week after completion of
treatment to measure the severity of their cough. The main outcome measure was
the mean cough frequency before and after one week's treatment calculated by a
validated visual analogue cough questionnaire score.
RESULTS:
There were 97 adult patients (55 men) enrolled in this study
with the mean of age of 40.1 years old. The mean (+/- SD) cough scores pre- and
post-treatment were: HC group 2.9 (0.3) pre-treatment and 0.2 (0.5)
post-treatment (p < 0.001); steroid ('S') group 3.0 (0.0) pre-treatment and
2.4 (0.6) post-treatment (p < 0.05); control ('C') group 2.8 (0.4)
pre-treatment and 2.7 (0.5) post-treatment (p > 0.05). Analysis of variance
showed a significant difference between the mean cough frequency before and
after treatment in the HC group versus the S group (p < 0.001). Honey plus
coffee was found to be the most effective treatment modality for PPC.
Honey with Coffee: A new finding in the treatment of Persistent Postinfectious Cough
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