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When to see a doctor

By Mayo Clinic staff

Call your doctor if you or your child is:

  • Coughing up thick, greenish-yellow phlegm
  • Wheezing
  • Experiencing a fever over 100 F (38 C)
  • Experiencing shortness of breath

Seek emergency care
Seek emergency care if you or your child is:

  • Having difficulty breathing or swallowing
  • Coughing up bloody or pink-tinged phlegm

Self-care measures
To ease your cough, try these tips:

  • Suck cough drops or hard candies. They may ease a dry cough and soothe an irritated throat. Don't give them to a child under age 3, however, because they can cause choking.
  • Moisturize the air. Use a vaporizer or take a hot, steamy shower.
  • Drink fluids. Liquid helps thin the mucus in your throat. Warm liquids, such as broth or tea, can soothe your throat.
References
  1. Cough. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. National Institutes of Health. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/cough/cough_all.html. Accessed July 1, 2010.
  2. Information for patients complaining of cough. American College of Chest Physicians. http://accpstorage.org/newOrganization/patients/cough/adult.pdf. Accessed July 1, 2010.
  3. Cough symptoms chart. American Academy of Family Physicians. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/tools/symptom/516.html. Accessed July 1, 2010.
  4. Seller RH. Cough. In: Seller RH. Differential Diagnosis of Common Complaints. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007:93.
  5. Moreno MA. Advice for parents: Bronchiolitis and Respiratory Syncytial Virus. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. 2009;163:1072.
  6. Bronchiolitis and your child. American Academy of Family Physicians. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/children/parents/common/common/020.html. Accessed July 1, 2010.
  7. Patient information for parents of a child with cough. American College of Chest Physicians. http://accpstorage.org/newOrganization/patients/cough/pediatric.pdf. Accessed July 1, 2010.
  8. Rosenow EC (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. July 6, 2010.
MY00108 Sept. 3, 2010

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