Smoker's cough: Difference between revisions
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'''Smoker's cough''' is a kind of [[cough]] seen especially in smokers. Any irritant present in the [[respiratory system]] may trigger cough, however, smoker's cough develops as a consequence of [[phlegm]] buildup in the [[trachea]]. |
'''Smoker's cough''' is a kind of [[cough]] seen especially in smokers. Any irritant present in the [[respiratory system]] may trigger cough, however, smoker's cough develops as a consequence of [[phlegm]] buildup in the [[trachea]]. |
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==Cause== |
==Cause== |
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In the |
In the trachea, the walls are lined with [[cilia]], small hairs that protrude from the tracheal [[epithelium]]. They move in a synchronous wavelike motion, thereby moving foreign bodies trapped in phlegm upwards towards the [[oropharynx]], so they may be swallowed. Cigarette smoke destroys or paralyses these cilia, so the only way that phlegm can be removed is via coughing. |
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[[Category:Symptoms]] |
[[Category:Symptoms]] |
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[[Category:Tobacco]] |
[[Category:Tobacco]] |
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Revision as of 21:59, 23 October 2007
Smoker's cough is a kind of cough seen especially in smokers. Any irritant present in the respiratory system may trigger cough, however, smoker's cough develops as a consequence of phlegm buildup in the trachea.
Cause
In the trachea, the walls are lined with cilia, small hairs that protrude from the tracheal epithelium. They move in a synchronous wavelike motion, thereby moving foreign bodies trapped in phlegm upwards towards the oropharynx, so they may be swallowed. Cigarette smoke destroys or paralyses these cilia, so the only way that phlegm can be removed is via coughing.