Extract
Over-the-counter (OTC) medicines are relied on by millions of patients worldwide to provide relief from acute cough, which is almost exclusively caused by acute viral upper respiratory tract infection (URTI). The worldwide market for such medicines is enormous, amounting to €5.77 billion in 2014 (source: IMS Health, Danbury, CT, USA). Doubts have been expressed as to the efficacy of these drugs [1], and there is no doubt that simple measures used in proprietary and home remedies can have significant benefit through a poorly defined “demulcent” effect. However, significant additional benefit from pharmacotherapy can also be demonstrated [2].
Abstract
It is time to abandon the dry/wet classification of acute cough due to URTI http://ow.ly/Sfc1X
Footnotes
Conflict of interest: Disclosures can be found alongside this article at openres.ersjournals.com
- Received August 11, 2015.
- Accepted September 14, 2015.
- Copyright ©ERS 2015
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