Somatic Cough Syndrome (Previously Referred to as Psychogenic Cough) and Tic Cough (Previously Referred to as Habit Cough) in Adults and Children

Anne E. Vertigan, Mohammad H. Murad, Tamara Pringsheim, Anthony Feinstein, Anne B. Chang, Peter A. Newcombe, Bruce K. Rubin, Lorcan P. McGarvey, Kelly Weir, Kenneth W. Altman, Miles Weinberger, Richard S. Irwin, Todd M. Adams, Kenneth W. Altman, Alan F. Barker, Surinder S. Birring, Fiona Blackhall, Donald C. Bolser, Louis-Philippe Boulet, Sidney S. Braman, Christopher Brightling, Priscilla Callahan-Lyon, Brendan J. Canning, Anne B. Chang, Remy Coeytaux, Terrie Cowley, Paul Davenport, Rebecca L. Diekemper, Satoru Ebihara, Ali A. El Solh, Patricio Escalante, Anthony Feinstein, Stephen K. Field, Dina Fisher, Cynthia T. French, Peter Gibson, Philip Gold, Michael K. Gould, Cameron Grant, Susan M. Harding, Anthony Harnden, Adam T. Hill, Richard S. Irwin, Peter J. Kahrilas, Karina A. Keogh, Andrew P. Lane, Kaiser Lim, Mark A. Malesker, Peter Mazzone, Stuart Mazzone, Douglas C. McCrory, Lorcan McGarvey, Alex Molasiotis, M. Hassan Murad, Peter Newcombe, Huong Q. Nguyen, John Oppenheimer, David Prezant, Tamara Pringsheim, Marcos I. Restrepo, Mark Rosen, Bruce Rubin, Jay H. Ryu, Jaclyn Smith, Susan M. Tarlo, Anne E. Vertigan, Gang Wang, Miles Weinberger, Kelly Weir, Renda Soylemez Wiener

We conducted a systematic review on the management of psychogenic cough, habit cough, and tic cough to update the recommendations and suggestions of the 2006 guideline on this topic. We followed the CHEST methodological guidelines and the GRADE framework. The Expert Cough Panel based their recommendations on data from the systematic review, patients' values and preferences and the clinical context. Final grading was reached by consensus according to Delphi methodology. The results of the systematic review revealed only low quality evidence to support how to define or diagnose psychogenic or habit cough with no validated diagnostic criteria. With respect to treatment, low quality evidence allowed the committee to only suggest therapy for children thought to have psychogenic cough. Such therapy might consist of non-pharmacological trials of hypnosis or suggestion therapy or combinations of reassurance, counselling, and referral to a psychologist, psychotherapy and appropriate psychotropic medications. Based on multiple resources and contemporary psychological, psychiatric and neurological criteria (DSM-5 and tic disorder guidelines), the committee suggests that the terms psychogenic and habit cough are out of date and inaccurate. Compared to the 2006 CHEST Cough Guidelines, the major change in suggestions is that the terms psychogenic and habit cough be abandoned in favour of Somatic Cough Syndrome and Habit Cough, respectively, even though the evidence to do so at this time is of low quality.