A case of atopic cough with aphonia showed a prominent response to a histamine H1 receptor antagonist.

Abstract

A 33-year-old woman admitted to our hospital for further examination of severe non-productive cough lasting for about two months. Her symptom did not ameliorate by treatments including long acting β2 agonists. She had a medical history of drug allergy to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. At the initial visit, she could not speak at all and communicated with us in writing. Chest auscultation revealed no wheezes, rhonchi and other crackles. Laboratory findings showed a mild eosinophilia with normal total and specific serum immunoglobulin E. The results of an electrocardiogram, a chest X-ray and a chest CT were unremarkable. A fractional exhaled nitric oxide value was within normal limit. Based on these observations, a diagnosis of atopic cough (AC) was suspected, and we started treatment with a histamine H1 receptor antagonist (H1-RA). She had become able to speak again in association with complete disappearance of cough by eight-weeks after treatment initiation, and her symptoms did not recur even after cessation of treatment. By the confirmation of remarkable clinical improvement in response to a H1-RA, a diagnosis of AC was made. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of an AC patient who presented severe cough with aphonia. J. Med. Invest. 70 : 281-284, February, 2023.

• Authors: Masaki Hanibuch, Atsushi Mitsuhashi, Atsuro Saijo, Tatsuya Kajimoto, Seidai Sato, Tetsuya Kitagawa, Yasuhiko Nishioka
• Journal: The journal of medical investigation : JMI (J Med Invest) Vol. 70 Issue 1.2 Pg. 281-284 ( 2023) ISSN: 1349-6867 [Electronic] Japan
• PMID: 37164735 (Publication Type: Case Reports, Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Histamine H1 Antagonists

Topics

• Adult
• Female
• Humans
• Aphonia (complications, drug therapy)
• Cough (drug therapy, etiology)
• Histamine H1 Antagonists (therapeutic use)