It is not uncommon for every child to experience a cough as they grow up. However, parents are often worried about damaging their “lungs”, and some even make sure to ask their doctor for intravenous anti-inflammatory medication to stop the cough. Some children do get a “saline drip” for a cold or allergic cough. So do coughs need anti-inflammatory drugs to stop coughing or not? First, let’s look at how the body coughs. Coughing is a neurological reflex. The mucous membrane of the human respiratory tract has receptors on its surface, just like the skin of a person, which can feel cold, warmth, pain and numbness. When there is inflammation in the respiratory tract, secretions (phlegm) are produced, and when cold, hot, or dirty air is inhaled, the respiratory mucosa is also stimulated to respond, and this response is transmitted to the cough center (medulla oblongata) through the sensory nerve fibers of the vagus, glossopharyngeal, and trigeminal nerves. On the other hand, some stimuli do not come from the respiratory tract itself, but from organs and tissues outside the respiratory tract, and are generally transmitted to the cough center by the vagus nerve, which is located not only in the respiratory tract, but also in various parts of the internal organs such as the ear, pleura, and heart, and stimuli from these parts are transmitted to the cough center through the vagus nerve. The cough center sends impulses through the hypoglossal, phrenic and spinal nerves to the pharyngeal, vocal, diaphragmatic and respiratory muscles to cause coughing actions to remove various types of irritants. Therefore, the same cough with a different etiology is treated differently. There are causes in the respiratory tract itself and factors outside the respiratory tract that cause cough. There are infections and non-infections. Not all coughs can be solved by anti-inflammatory measures, especially in chronic coughs where tracing the root cause is the first thing to do. Children’s respiratory specialists have concluded that some cough causes are age-specific. In children younger than 1 year old, the causes are, in order: respiratory infections and post-infectious cough, congenital tracheopulmonary dysplasia, gastroesophageal reflux, tuberculosis, and other cardiothoracic anomalies; 1-3 years old are more likely to have respiratory infections and post-infectious cough, upper airway syndrome, cough variant asthma, airway foreign bodies, gastroesophageal reflux, and tuberculosis; preschool age is the same as early childhood causes, in addition to bronchiectasis; school-age children Most commonly seen in upper airway syndrome, cough variant asthma, post-infectious cough, tuberculosis, cardiac-caused cough, airway foreign bodies, and bronchiectasis. The doctor will determine what the cause of the cough is based on the symptoms combined with age and necessary tests. Treating the cause is fundamental. Coughs caused by bacterial infections are treated with antibiotics, which are often called anti-inflammatory treatments. Other coughs have their own treatment. Coughs caused by respiratory infections are the most common type of cough and sometimes persist for some time after the infection has been controlled. This cough is the body’s instinctive self-protection to expel harmful substances, such as phlegm and inhaled foreign bodies, but on the other hand, a violent cough can mechanically damage the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract, which can affect the child’s rest and learning. So how do you know whether to stop or stop coughing? Coughing cannot be stopped alone, especially in infants, because their airways are narrow, their mucous membranes are tender, their cilia are poorly mobile, their respiratory mucous glands do not secrete enough, and because of their weak cough reflex, airway inflammation produces sputum that can easily block the airway and cause asphyxia. There are so many kinds of expectorant drugs: guaiacol glycerol ether, ammonia chloride, bromhexine, aminobroxol, etc. These drugs dilute sputum, promote the movement of bronchial epithelial cilia, and act as expectorants, so they can be used for coughs of various causes. If a child has a severe dry cough, which often interferes with rest, repeated coughing and mechanical damage to the airway mucosa can aggravate the cough, an appropriate amount of cough suppressant can be used in this case. There are two main types of cough suppressants: central cough suppressants and non-central cough suppressants. Some are addictive, such as codeine, and some cough syrups contain this ingredient. Pentoxifylline is 1/3 as strong as codeine. The American Academy of Pediatrics warns against the use of codeine. Dextromethorphan can be used for irritating dry coughs and severe coughs because it is not addictive. Finasteride cough syrup has cough suppressant and anti-allergic effects. Because finasteride thickens sputum and has a drowsy effect, it is also contraindicated in children under 2 years of age, and school-age children who attend school during the day can interfere with their studies; it is only indicated for dry cough at night in children over 2 years of age. Some cough syrups also contain bronchodilators and are indicated for children with coughing and wheezing.