Poor cough-specific quality of life (QOL) was independently associated with respiratory hospitalization, death, and lung transplantation in a large population of well-characterized patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD), new research shows.
"Unfortunately, chronic cough in ILD is a pervasive and very distressing problem for our patients," Janet Lee, MD, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, told Medscape Medical News in an email. "Next to dyspnea," she added, "chronic cough is probably the most common symptom of ILD, and this cough can affect a patient on several levels."
Coughing fits can worsen breathing and make it even harder for patients to exert themselves. This could contribute to further deconditioning, Lee explained. She also noted, "As we have all learned during the COVD-19 pandemic, people who don't understand that [a] patient can cough because of underlying lung disease may well construe [that] ILD patients have something else, which makes patients socially anxious."
Although more data are needed, "others have postulated that the mechanical forces inflicted on the lungs by a serve cough could damage them in the long-term," Lee emphasized.
The study was published online in the journal Chest.
Range of Diagnoses
A total of 1447 patients with ILD were included in the study.
