What should you know about coughing and difficulty breathing?

A viral cold or acute bronchitis can inflame the airways and make breathing feel tight. Asthma may cause episodes of cough, wheeze, chest tightness, or breathlessness, often after exercise, cold air, or an irritant. Allergic rhinitis can add nasal blockage and throat drainage. Acid reflux may trigger a recurrent cough, especially after meals or when lying down. Bronchiectasis, bronchiolitis, and chronic cough are other possibilities, depending on age, duration, and examination findings.

Breathlessness can be hard to describe. Tell the clinician whether it occurs at rest or with activity, starts suddenly or gradually, and improves when you sit upright.

Stop exertion, sit upright, loosen tight clothing, and move away from smoke or a suspected irritant. Use a prescribed reliever inhaler exactly as directed; do not borrow someone else's inhaler. Arrange medical advice for a new, persistent, or worsening combination of cough and breathlessness. Note triggers, wheezing, fever, phlegm, chest pain, and any pattern at night.

Call emergency services for severe breathlessness, inability to speak in full sentences, blue or grey lips, confusion, fainting, sudden chest pain, or rapidly worsening symptoms. Urgent care is also needed if breathing becomes difficult after an allergic exposure or if a child is struggling to breathe. Do not drive if you feel faint or severely short of breath.

Ask whether your symptoms suggest asthma, infection, allergy, reflux, or another airway condition; whether you need lung-function testing or imaging; and how to use any inhaler correctly. Ask for a written action plan if episodes recur.