A short dry cough and sneezing may mark the first stage of influenza or be the precursor of measles and other eruptive diseases.

Cough is sometimes produced by indigestion and in this case it can only be cured by overcoming that difficulty.

A loud barking cough indicates bronchial difficulty and in children may indicate croup. A hacking cough with pain and fever points to inflammation of the lungs. In Asthma the cough is accompanied with a wheezing or whistling respiration and difficulty of breathing.