The winter virus season is often characterized by a hallmark sound: coughing. This year, though, some physicians and patients say coughing has been more persistent, often lasting for weeks after a virus passes, according to a Jan. 22 report in The Washington Post.
Data on persistent coughs is not tracked on a national level, so it's unclear whether cases are up this year compared to others. Still, several physicians told the Post they're seeing more patients with lingering coughs than usual.
Natasha Bhuyan, MD, national medical director and physician at One Medical, told the Post that "many of our members" are reporting persistent coughing that they "just can't shake." Michael Stephen, MD, a pulmonary physician at Philadelphia-based Penn Medicine, reported a similar trend.
"It's basically hijacked my whole practice," he told the Post, adding that some of his patients have been coughing for one or two months.
Russell Buhr, MD, PhD, a pulmonary and critical care medicine physician at UCLA Health in Los Angeles, said he sees persistent coughing more frequently than he did a few years ago but attributes the uptick to patients "paying more attention" to their coughs and respiratory symptoms since COVID-19.
"Everyone is a little hesitant to show up at work with anything that resembles any kind of illness," he told the publication.