Persistent cough after COVID-19 Pathophysiology and homoeopathic management

Abstract

COVID-19 is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus2 (SARS-CoV-2), which infects host cells via angiotensin-converting enzyme2. Although 80% of infections are mild or asymptomatic, patients with moderate and severe COVID-19 develop a wide range of symptoms, including respiratory, vascular and neurological complications. Cough can persist for weeks or months after SARS-CoV-2 infection, often accompanied by chronic fatigue, cognitive impairment, dyspnoea, or pain—a collection of long-term effects referred to as the post-COVID syndrome or long COVID. A post viral cough is a distressing symptom which may be lingering for many months. Stigmatisation of patients with cough can occur, leading to social isolation, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many antitussive therapies are available, and it is yet to study a lot about the effectiveness. We currently have little understanding of the mechanisms underlying COVID-19-associated cough. This is an attempt to understand the pathophysiological mechanism of post covid cough, from available data collected from different sources and to study the scope of Homoeopathy in post covid cough.