To cough is a protective defence mechanism that is vital to remove foreign material and secretions from the airways and which in the normal state serves its function appropriately. Modulation of the cough reflex pathway in disease can lead to inappropriate chronic coughing and an augmented cough response. Chronic cough is a symptom that can present in conjunction with a number of diseases inclu...

We evaluated in vitro the cariogenic and erosive potential of antitussive liquid oral medications for paediatric use. Fifteen paediatric liquid antitussives were sampled. The endogenous pH was evaluated by potentiometry, titratable acidity was measured according to the method adopted by the Association of Official Analytical Chemists, total soluble solids content (TSSC) readings were performed ...

Cough is one of the commonest symptoms of respiratory tract infections and is a frequent problem encountered in general practice as well as in hospital practice. A wide range of disease processes may present with cough and definitive treatment depends on identifying the cause and diagnosis. Specific treatment of the cause should control the cough, but this may not occur in all cases and in a si...

Dextromethorphan is a synthetic morphine derivative used as a cough suppressant in the form of hydrobromide salt. It is widely used, either alone or in combination with other compounds, but there have been few published reports of adverse cutaneous reactions. Only 2 cases of fixed drug eruption (FDE) due to dextromethorphan have been reported in the literature [1,2] and neither of them evaluate...

Guaifenesin is an over-the-counter expectorant used for chest congestion and is available both in single-ingredient formulations and in combination with antihistamines, cough suppressants and decongestants. The documented side-effects of guaifenesin are generally mild. We present the case of a 23-year-old female who committed suicide by ingestion of guaifenesin along with small amounts of cetir...

Many physiological processes and pathological conditions in livers are spatially heterogeneous, forming patterns at the lobular length scale or varying across the organ. Steatosis, a common liver disease characterized by lipids accumulating in hepatocytes, exhibits heterogeneity at both these spatial scales. The main goal of the present study was to provide a method for zonated quantification o...

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C OUGH IS A COMMON SYMPTOM IN PEDIATric practice and can be particularly troubling to children and their parents, resulting in discomfort, loss of sleep, and missed schooldays and workdays. Caregivers frequently administer over-the-counter (OTC) medications to their children in an attempt to treat cough. Apart from the costs associated with such medications, some OTC medications have unwelcome ...

Opioids exert an analgesic action by mimicking the effects of endogenous neurotransmitter substances in the central nervous system. Opioids are widely used as antitussives, and it is reasonable to assume that endogenous opioids are involved in the control of cough. In order to investigate this hypothesis, a parallel design study was carried out to examine the effects of 50 mg codeine (opioid ag...