Table I.
Clinical feature among different causes of chronic cough
| Variable | CVA (N = 222) | EB (N = 259) | GERC (N = 145) | UACS (N = 85) | OC (N = 451) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sex: female | 165 (74.3)∗ | 133 (51.4)† | 66 (45.5)† | 38 (44.7)† | 242 (53.7)† | <.0001 |
| Age (y) | 42.07 ± 14.0∗,† | 42.3 ± 14.9∗,† | 40.8 ± 12.3∗,† | 39.2 ± 11.8† | 44.3 ± 14.5∗ | .0074 |
| Duration (mo) | 18.0 (6.0-55.5)∗ | 22 (6.0-84.0)∗,† | 24.0 (12.0-84.0)†,‡ | 24.0 (6.0-72.0)∗,†,‡ | 36.0 (12.0-96.0)‡ | <.0001 |
| Nonproductive cough, n (%) | 139 (62.6)∗ | 142 (55.3)∗ | 114 (79.2)† | 51 (60.0)∗ | 268 (59.4)∗ | <.0001 |
| Timing of cough | ||||||
| Daily cough alone | 74 (33.3)∗ | 128 (49.4)† | 101 (70.1)‡ | 52 (61.2)†,‡ | 267 (59.6)†,‡ | <.0001 |
| Nocturnal cough alone | 18 (8.1)∗ | 12 (4.6)∗,† | 0 (0)† | 2 (2.4)∗,† | 8 (1.8)† | .0001 |
| Total nocturnal cough | 147 (66.2)∗ | 128 (49.4)† | 43 (29.9)‡ | 31 (36.5)†,‡ | 176 (39.4)†,‡ | <.0001 |
| Triggers | ||||||
| Dust | 85 (38.3)∗ | 91 (35.1)∗ | 61 (42.1)∗ | 38 (44.7)∗,† | 260 (57.6)† | <.0001 |
| Cooking smell | 103 (46.4) | 115 (44.4) | 75 (51.7) | 40 (47.1) | 218 (48.3) | .6856 |
| Cold air | 123 (55.4) | 134 (51.7) | 75 (51.7) | 49 (57.6) | 227 (50.3) | .6297 |
| Common cold | 144 (62.3) | 130 (50.2) | 75 (51.7) | 47 (55.3) | 246 (54.7) | .0886 |
| Lying down | 58 (26.1)∗ | 40 (15.4)† | 23 (15.9)∗,† | 18 (21.2)∗,† | 73 (16.2)† | .0116 |
| Cigarettes smoke | 96 (43.2) | 119 (45.9) | 73 (50.3) | 39 (45.9) | 232 (51.4) | .2816 |
| Exercise | 39 (17.6) | 40 (15.4) | 31 (21.4) | 9 (10.6) | 85 (18.8) | .2283 |
| Talking | 52 (23.4)∗ | 71 (27.5)∗,† | 65 (44.8)‡ | 31 (36.5)∗,†,‡ | 166 (37.0)†,‡ | <.0001 |
| Eating | 9 (4.1)∗ | 15 (5.8)∗,† | 22 (15.2)‡ | 10 (11.8)∗,†,‡ | 37 (8.2)∗,†,‡ | .0011 |
| After meals | 8 (3.6)∗ | 15 (5.8)∗,† | 36 (24.8)‡ | 11 (12.9)†,‡ | 55 (12.2)† | <.0001 |
| Other | 28 (12.6) | 26 (10.0) | 17 (11.7) | 7 (8.2) | 49 (10.9) | .8111 |
| Concomitant symptoms | ||||||
| Runny nose | 77 (34.7)∗,‡ | 63 (24.4)†,‡ | 33 (22.8)†,‡ | 36 (42.4)∗ | 94 (20.8)† | <.0001 |
| Postnasal dripping | 46 (20.7)∗ | 57 (22.0)∗ | 25 (17.2)∗ | 37 (43.5)† | 79 (17.5)∗ | <.0001 |
| Sneezing | 104 (46.8)∗ | 98 (37.5)∗,† | 38 (25.5)† | 37 (42.4)∗,† | 131 (28.8)† | <.0001 |
| Nasal itching | 94 (42.3)∗ | 61 (23.6)†,‡ | 31 (21.4)†,‡ | 30 (35.3)∗,‡ | 79 (17.5)† | <.0001 |
| Nasal congestion | 76 (34.2)∗,† | 74 (28.6)∗ | 37 (25.5)∗ | 40 (47.1)† | 128 (28.4)∗ | .0038 |
| Itchy throat | 136 (61.3) | 137 (52.9) | 86 (59.3) | 52 (61.2) | 265 (58.8) | .3681 |
| Itching below the throat | 74 (33.3) | 87 (33.6) | 41 (28.3) | 34 (40.0) | 137 (30.4) | .3497 |
| Pharyngeal foreign body sensation | 30 (24.0)∗,† | 40 (17.5)† | 41 (28.9)∗,†,‡ | 31 (37.8)∗,‡ | 169 (39.3)‡ | <.0001 |
| Frequent throat clearing | 79 (35.6)∗,† | 78 (30.1)† | 69 (47.6)∗,‡ | 53 (62.4)‡ | 160 (35.5)∗,† | <.0001 |
| Chest tightness | 70 (31.5) | 55 (21.2) | 46 (31.7) | 20 (23.5) | 117 (25.9) | .0597 |
| Shortness of breath | 55 (24.8) | 43 (16.6) | 28 (19.3) | 16 (18.8) | 84 (18.6) | .2333 |
| Acid regurgitation | 24 (10.8)∗ | 30 (11.6)∗ | 59 (40.7)† | 14 (16.5)∗ | 79 (17.5)∗ | <.0001 |
| Heartburn | 4 (1.8)∗ | 8 (3.1)∗,† | 33 (22.8)‡ | 3 (3.5)∗,† | 37 (8.2)† | <.0001 |
| Belching | 25 (11.3)∗,† | 26 (10.0)† | 59 (40.7)‡ | 11 (12.9)∗,† | 84 (18.6)∗ | <.0001 |
| Medical history | ||||||
| Rhinitis | 104 (47.1)∗ | 88 (34.0)† | 33 (22.8)†,‡ | 33 (39.3)∗,† | 70 (15.9)‡ | <.0001 |
| Sinusitis | 21 (9.5)∗ | 22 (8.5)∗ | 19 (13.1)∗ | 30 (35.7)† | 43 (9.8)∗ | <.0001 |
| Gastrointestinal disorders | 39 (17.6)∗ | 44 (17.0)∗ | 53 (38.6)† | 20 (23.8)∗,† | 94 (21.4)∗ | <.0001 |
| Hypertension | 28 (12.7) | 26 (10.0) | 11 (7.6) | 4 (4.8) | 50 (11.4) | .2136 |
OC, Other causes.
Data are presented as frequency (percentage), mean ± SD, or median (interquartile range). P values for post hoc test was adjusted with Bonferroni method.
∗
A subset of different causes of chronic cough categories whose column data do not differ significantly from each other at the .05 level.
†
A subset of different causes of chronic cough categories whose column data do not differ significantly from each other at the .05 level.
‡
A subset of different causes of chronic cough categories whose column data do not differ significantly from each other at the .05 level.