Classification of cough

Not all coughs are the same.

If you have a cough, keep track of the
following cough characteristics:⁷

Duration
Types
Features of the cough
Accompanying symptoms

Cough classification

A cough can be classified by identifying how long you have been suffering from it.

Acute cough vs Chronic cough

Acute Cough⁸	Chronic Cough
Duration: Less than 3 weeks	Duration: More than 8 weeks
Causes: Mostly common cold Recovery: Starts to improve by the 3rd to 5th day	Causes⁸: Inflammation of the membranes inside the nose or sinuses Poorly controlled asthma Smoking Acid reflux

Cough can also be classified
by whether it produces
mucus or phlegm.⁷

Differences between wet and dry cough

Dry cough (non-productive) vs Wet (productive) cough

Dry cough (non-productive)	Wet chesty (productive) cough
Does not produce phlegm⁷ Develops during the first days of upper respiratory tract infection⁵ Can be caused by allergies¹¹	Happens later in the course of upper respiratory tract infection⁵ May be related to inflammation spreading to lower airway and triggering mucus production⁵ Mucus may come back from the back of the throat, nose, sinuses or up from your lungs¹¹

Other types of cough

Seasonal cough

Acute viral upper respiratory illness such as
influenza can cause seasonal coughs.
Seasonal influenza activity usually peaks at
the turn of the year or around December.⁹

Night time cough

This type of cough attacks mostly at
night.⁷ Chronic nighttime cough can have
many causes including asthma, upper
airways cough syndrome and acid reflux
disease.¹¹

Cough Types and Their Classifications