Clinical cough III: Measuring the cough response in the laboratory

Abstract

As interest in clinical cough research grows, measurement of cough reflex sensitivity will assume an increasingly important role. With proper equipment and meticulous attention to methodological details, cough reflex sensitivity can be safely, accurately, and reproducibly determined. Such precise measurement allows the evaluation of the effect of pharmacological or nonpharmacological interventions on the sensitivity of the cough reflex, or the comparison of cough reflex sensitivity between different subject populations. In addition to the method, other vital components of optimal cough challenge testing include proper interpretation of data and appropriate selection of study populations. © 2009 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.