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What Can Cause A Cough And Sore Throat With No Fever?
People may experience a cough and sore throat, but no fever. Causes of this can include a simple irritation, infection, or obstruction in the throat.
Coughing is a natural reflex that helps clear the airways of mucus and other irritants. People often experience a cough alongside a fever, but this is not always the case.
This article outlines the various causes of a cough without a fever, along with their associated treatments. It also provides advice on home remedies and when to see a doctor.
Coughing is a natural reflex that helps clear the airways of mucus and other irritants.
There are two basic types of cough: productive and nonproductive. Productive coughs, or wet coughs, produce mucus, whereas nonproductive coughs, or dry coughs, do not.
Coughs can also differ in severity and duration. The general medical consensus is that there are three categories of cough. These are:
Below are some potential causes of a cough without a fever.
Common coldAdults typically get two or three colds a year, and most of these occur due to a group of viruses called rhinoviruses.
The common cold may cause a mild to moderate cough, usually without a fever. Other possible symptoms of a cold include:
TreatmentThe common cold usually goes away within 1–2 weeks without the need for medical treatment.
However, a person can take over-the-counter (OTC) medications to help alleviate the symptoms.
Learn more about how to treat a cold.
GERDGastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a condition in which acid and other contents frequently leak out of the stomach and back into the esophagus. The esophagus is the tube that connects the mouth and stomach.
Acid reflux can irritate the lining of the esophagus, triggering a cough.
Other possible symptoms include:
TreatmentPeople may find that certain lifestyle adjustments help them manage GERD. These may include:
If lifestyle changes do not lead to an improvement in GERD, a person may require OTC or prescription medications.
Learn more about treatment for GERD.
Postnasal dripPostnasal drip is where excess mucus builds up in the back of the sinuses and trickles down the back of the throat. This trickling can irritate the throat, causing a person to cough.
Other possible symptoms of postnasal drip include:
The following home treatments may help alleviate the symptoms of postnasal drip:
Learn more about the treatment for postnasal drip.
Post-infectious coughIn some cases, a person can experience a cough without fever after the initial infection has resolved.
According to a 2016 article, inflammation increases mucus production, and upper and lower airways damage can cause a post-infectious cough.
People may experience a post-infectious cough after the following conditions:
The treatment for a post-infectious cough is typically medication, with the options including:
The causes of a cough without fever in children can be the same as those for adults. However, certain causes are more common in children than in adults. They include:
Inhaled objectsChildren may put objects in their mouths out of curiosity or experimentation or to alleviate the discomfort of teething. If a child accidentally inhales a small object, it can become trapped in the airways. This can lead to coughing.
In some cases, coughing helps dislodge the object from the child's airways.
In other cases, the object may cause a complete blockage of the airways, which results in choking. This is a medical emergency. A child who is choking will be unable to cough, cry, or breathe.
TreatmentIf a child has inhaled an object and is coughing, the act of coughing should help dislodge the object.
However, a child who is showing signs of choking will require emergency treatment. The treatment will depend on the age of the person who is choking.
Adults and children over 1 year of age will require abdominal thrusts. Babies younger than 1 year will require rescue back blows and chest thrusts.
Nervousness or anxietiesSome children may clear their throat when nervous or anxious. Some people refer to this as a "habit cough."
TreatmentThe treatment for a habit cough may involve:
Below are answers to some frequently asked questions about a cough with no fever.
What are some home remedies for treating a cough?An acute cough may sometimes improve with the use of at-home strategies, such as:
Some people may also find relief by using OTC medications, such as:
Certain cough and cold medications are not suitable for children. A person can discuss appropriate options with a pharmacist or doctor.
How do doctors diagnose the cause of a cough?When diagnosing the cause of a cough without fever, a doctor will ask about the symptoms a person is experiencing. They may also carry out a physical exam, during which they will use a stethoscope to listen for any unusual sounds in the lungs.
A doctor may also recommend other diagnostic procedures, including:
Coughs should improve without medical intervention in 3–4 weeks. However, if a cough persists beyond 4 weeks, a person should consult a doctor for a diagnosis.
A person should also speak with a doctor if any of the following symptoms accompany their cough:
Coughing and a sore throat can occur for many different reasons. A cough and sore throat that occur without a fever may be due to irritation in the throat or the inhalation of a foreign object.
If a person does not notice an improvement in their cough after several weeks, they should consult a doctor for a diagnosis and appropriate treatment.
People should seek medical attention at an earlier stage if they have accompanying symptoms, such as chest pain, shortness of breath, and increased mucus production.
'I Thought It Was Just The Flu': 27-year-old Influencer Reveals How She Dismissed Symptoms Of Dengue Fever On A Dream Holiday
A tourist on a dream Bali holiday thought she had just fallen ill with the flu, but it turned out to be potentially life-threatening dengue.
Emma Cox, 27, had been on the tropical island in Indonesia for just 10 days before coming down with muscle and joint pain and a severe headaches so painful she had to wear sunglasses indoors.
Urgently booking a flight home to the UK, she developed a full body rash shortly following her arrival and the 'terrified' West Yorkshire-native rushed to A&E where medics confirmed she had been infected with the mosquito-borne virus.
'The virus gave me a rash that spread right across my body — I felt horrendous, and thought it wasn't ever going to go away,' she said.
Experts warn Ms Cox's experience could be coming much closer to home with the dengue cases having exploded in Europe as the mosquitos which carry the virus become increasingly common on the continent.
Emma Cox, 27, had been on the tropical island in Indonesia for just 10 days before coming down with dengue
Three days after returning to the UK she awoke to find a 'horrendous' rash covering her body
The content creator also experienced muscle and joint pain and a severe headaches so painful she had to wear sunglasses indoors
With the insects now being reported in France, public health scientists now fear the Paris Olympics in July could turn into a dengue 'superspreader event'.
Ms Cox arrived in Indonesia on May 6 this year and began feeling unwell on the fifth day of her trip, but initially dismissed this as just being due to the air-conditioning.
She woke up with muscle pain and joint pain — as well as a burning sensation behind her eyes, classic signs of dengue infection.
Ms Cox also felt exhausted - but paradoxically too restless to get any sleep with painful headaches forcing her to wear sunglasses inside 24/7.
With hindsight she now knows it was the mosquitoes that were plaguing her in the night that gave her the dengue virus.
'In my room, the glass on the window was cracked and there was a big hole in it,' she said.
'It sounds so stupid, but I couldn't see it because it was covered by a curtain.
'Every night while I was staying there, I'd wake up, covered in bites.
'The only precaution I really took was spraying myself with repellent.'
At the time the content-maker thought she had just come down with the flu and decided to cut her trip short.
'My next thought was 'oh god, I'm going to have to spend 23 hours flying home,' she said.
'I genuinely thought I had the flu, and I was expecting it to go fairly quickly.'
On the day of her departure and arrival back in the UK Ms Cox said she started to feel much better.
'The symptoms went away,' she said. 'I was absolutely fine - I thought I must've got away with it.'
However, three days later she awoke to find a 'horrendous' rash covering her body.
'It was so strange, I felt fine within myself,' she said. 'But I'd woken up with bumps all over my body - I'd never seen anything like it.
Ms Cox sought advice about the rash from social media and she eventually went to A&E for help from medics
The 27-year-old originally thought she had fallen ill from the air-conditioning but it was eventually revealed a crack in a window in her accommodation was letting mosquitoes in
Dengue is spread by infected mosquitoes passing the virus onto to people through bites. Pictured are some of the NHS blood tests Ms Cox undertook while seeking help for her condition
Dengue is a potentially deadly virus passed to people by infected mosquitoes and was historically known as 'breakbone fever'
'They were really itchy, and they kept spreading.'
Posting about the experience on social media users advised her to go to call NHS 111 and mention she'd been in a dengue hotspot.
Advised by the NHS to go to A&E Ms Cox found herself being put into quarantine while medics ran tests in attempt to uncover the cause of her symptoms.
'They put me on an IV, and together we came up with a complete timeline of each place I'd visited,' she said.
'I had blood tests for loads of things - like Malaria, and HIV.
'It felt like they didn't really know how to treat someone with dengue.
What is dengue fever?Dengue is a viral infection spread by mosquitoes.
In most cases, the infection is mild and passes in around a week.
Symptoms usually include:
There is no cure or specific treatment.
Patients can relieve their symptoms via painkillers, staying hydrated and resting.
In rare cases, dengue symptoms can develop into severe dengue, with symptoms including:
Severe dengue is usually treated via a blood and platelet transfusion, IV fluids for rehydration and oxygen therapy if levels are low.
Advertisement'I was there for an hour, and they told me, because I didn't seem fatal, I could go home. They checked up on me with phone calls, once a day, for seven days'.
Ms Cox's rash eventually cleared up on its own, within eight days.
While Ms Cox caught dengue in the tropics where the virus is most common, cases of the potentially deadly virus are on the rise in Europe and British holidaymakers heading to the continent could be at risk.
A total of 130 cases of the disease were recorded in the EU and EEA last year, almost double the number compared to the previous year.
And health officials fear this is part of a growing trend. Case totals for 2023 and 2022 are a huge spike compared to the 73 cases recorded on the continent between 2010 and 2021.
Dengue historically known as 'breakbone fever' because of the severe pain it can cause in the muscles and the joints, is normally endemic to Central and South America, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia.
But experts warn that climate change is making the Mediterranean more hospitable for the mosquitoes that carry the disease.
Dengue symptoms typically strike between four to 10 days after being bitten, which means holidaymakers may still need to keep an eye for potential signs upon their return to Britain.
A dengue infection typically manifest as flu like symptoms.
Typically, patients suffer a fever that lasts for between two and seven days — this may peak, reduce and then peak again during this time.
During the first days, this may be accompanied by facial redness.
Other common symptoms at this stage include a severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pain — giving the disease its 'bone-breaker' moniker — nausea and vomiting and swollen glands.
A flat, red rash may appear over most of the body within three to seven days after the fever starts — thought to be caused by an immune system reaction to the virus. This is itchy is around a quarter of patients.
Although less common, bleeding gums may also be seen.
Brits with dengue symptoms who have been in an area where the disease is prevalent are advised to contact their GP or NHS 111 for an urgent appointment.
This is due to a risk of a potentially life-threatening complication that typically strikes just as people start to feel better.
While people infected with dengue recover after one to two weeks, there is a chance some can develop a far more serious form of the infection.
Called 'severe dengue' this is a life-threatening condition that develops in about one to 20 cases (five per cent) of people being infected with the virus.
Experts estimate this version of dengue kills half of people who suffer it.
Dengue is normally transmitted by mosquito bites, but exposure to infected blood can also result in people catching the virus
Symptoms of severe dengue include severe stomach pain, repeatedly being sick, fast breathing, bleeding gums, nose bleeds, extreme tiredness, restlessness and blood in your vomit or faeces.
These typically strike after between 24 to 48 hours after the initial wave of dengue symptoms has passed and people start to feel better.
It is a serious medical emergency and people with symptoms are advised to call 999 or head to A&E as soon as possible.
People who have had dengue previously are known to be more at risk of suffering a severe version of disease in the future from subsequent infections.
The NHS now warns people that dengue is a risk on European holiday-destinations like Croatia, France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal and Madeira between Spring and November.It also advises that people who are more vulnerable to dengue, such as young children, the elderly, pregnant women and those with a weakened immune system should avoid traveling to areas where the virus is present.
Dr Simon Clarke, an infectious disease expert University of Reading, told MailOnline that Brits heading to the continent needed to be aware of potential dengue symptoms even after they returned home.
'Dengue fever is something that has traditionally been associated with more unusual and exotic destinations, but more recently France, Italy and Spain have recorded multiple infections, so travellers from the UK should be more aware of this potentially fatal infection,' he said.
'Travellers need to be made aware not only of the increasing risk, but also of the symptoms, the 4fourto 10 days it can take for them to appear after someone has been bitten by an infected mosquito, and the importance of getting medical advice if they think they've contracted dengue.'
He added that as climate change is predicted to make the mosquitos that carry dengue more common in Europe controlling the insects would be an increasing important consideration for holiday destinations.
Professor Ian Jones, a virologist at Reading, also told this website that while there was no need re-think holiday plans yet, dengue in Europe is likely going to get worse.
The risk of contracting dengue in Europe remains low, far more cases are imported from countries where the infection is common, but the numbers are increasing, and we should expect this trend to continue in the near-term,' he said.
'A number of virus infections, including dengue, are transmitted by insects and as climate change expands their range, the incidence of virus infection also increases.'
He urged holidaymakers to take sensible precautions to reduce their risk of catching the virus when travelling in known dengue areas.
Prevention is considered the best way to avoid getting dengue and people visiting areas where the disease is prevalent are take steps to reduce their risk of mosquito bites.
Dengue fever is a viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes that has been historically confined to tropical or subtropical climates . It infects an estimated 400million people a year. Pictured: A house in Peru being fumigated against mosquitoes to prevent the spread of the disease
This map shows areas where mosquitoes capable of carrying dengue have been introduced in Britain. These populations have not yet established a permanent presence in the UK but experts have warned climate change means their spread is inevitable
These include wearing long sleeved clothing and trousers, using insect repellent, keeping unscreened windows closed in their accommodation, and sleeping under a mosquito net.
People should be especially cautious during the early morning and early evening as these are when mosquitoes are most active.
Dengue transmission is currently not considered a risk in the UK, though mosquitoes capable of carrying the virus have been found in the wild in Britain previously.
Normally, people with dengue cannot pass the virus to others directly, though mosquitoes can bite them and then go on to infect other people.
However, very rare cases of dengue being passed on through contact with infected blood via transfusions or organ donation have been recorded.
A total of 634 dengue cases were recorded by The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) in 2023.
These were all imported cases, where someone was infected while overseas and then fell ill upon returning.
UKHSA officials warned the figure was now approaching pre-Covid levels after cases naturally dived during the pandemic due to travel restrictions and urged travellers to be vigilant.
Experts have previously warned dengue is among a number of diseases that could become established the UK due to a 'slow march north' of insects due to climate change.
Globally, there were a reported 6.5million cases of dengue of which 7,300 resulted in death in 2023, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
However, the WHO says modelling suggests there are 390million actual infections per year.
Deadly Illness Surges In Europe - Symptoms And Signs To Know
Europe is currently battling a rise in 'dengue fever' cases, as an invasive mosquito species has been discovered in 13 EU countries. Dengue fever can be fatal in severe cases, although it often presents mild or no symptoms.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has issued a warning that about half of the world's population is now at risk of dengue, with an estimated 100-400 million infections each year. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) suggests that climate change is creating favourable conditions for the tiger mosquito, which is believed to be spreading the disease.
Even in Paris, authorities are actively monitoring and trapping these insects. The ECDC has warned that international travel could increase the risk of more outbreaks across Europe, according to the BBC.
But what exactly is dengue fever, how can you identify if you have it, what does it do - and how do you contract it?
Dengue fever, also known as break-bone fever, is a viral infection transmitted to humans via the bite of infected mosquitoes. It is prevalent in tropical and sub-tropical climates worldwide, primarily in urban and semi-urban areas.
Prevention and control of dengue hinge on vector control. There is no specific treatment for dengue/severe dengue, but early detection and access to appropriate medical care can significantly reduce fatality rates from severe dengue.
While most people who contract dengue fever won't show any symptoms, those who do may experience high fever, headache, body aches, nausea, and rash. The majority of patients recover within one to two weeks.
However, in some cases, individuals develop severe dengue which requires hospitalisation and can even be fatal. To reduce your risk, it's advised to avoid mosquito bites, especially during daylight hours.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), most people with dengue experience mild or no symptoms and recover within one to two weeks. In rare cases, dengue can become severe and result in death.
Symptoms typically begin 4-10 days after infection and last for 2-7 days. Those infected for the second time are at a higher risk of developing severe dengue.
Severe dengue symptoms often appear after the fever has subsided. Individuals exhibiting these severe symptoms should seek immediate medical attention.
After recovery, people who have had dengue may feel fatigued for several weeks.
There is no specific treatment for dengue. The focus is on managing pain symptoms.
Most cases of dengue fever can be treated at home with pain medication. For people with severe dengue, hospitalisation is often necessary.
Paracetamol, known as Acetaminophen, is a common remedy for pain management. However, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen and aspirin are typically avoided due to their potential to increase bleeding risk.
What are the symptoms?According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), most people with dengue experience mild or no symptoms and recover within one to two weeks. In rare cases, dengue can become severe and result in death.
Symptoms, if they occur, typically begin 410 days after infection and last for 27 days. Symptoms may include:
Those infected for the second time are at a higher risk of developing severe dengue.
Severe dengue symptoms often appear after the fever has subsided:
Currently, only one vaccine (QDenga) has been approved and licensed in certain countries. But it's only recommended for those aged between 6 to 16 years in high transmission areas.
Several other vaccines are currently under review.
But how do you catch it?The answer is simple: mosquito bites.
The dengue virus is transmitted to humans through the bites of infected female mosquitoes, primarily the Aedes aegypti species. Other species within the Aedes genus can also act as carriers, but their contribution is usually secondary to Aedes aegypti.
However, in 2023, there was a spike in local transmission of dengue by Aedes albopictus (tiger mosquito) in Europe.
After feeding on an infected person, the virus multiplies in the mosquito's midgut before spreading to secondary tissues, including the salivary glands. Once infectious, the mosquito can transmit the virus for the rest of its life.
Human-to-mosquito transmission.
Mosquitoes can become infected from people who have the dengue virus. This could be someone who has a symptomatic dengue infection, someone who is yet to show symptoms (they are pre-symptomatic), or even someone who shows no signs of illness (they are asymptomatic).
The dengue virus can be transmitted from human to mosquito up to two days before symptoms appear and for up to two days after the fever has subsided. Typically, people are viremic for around four to five days, but this can extend to as long as 12 days.
Maternal transmission is another method of spreading the dengue virus. Although primarily spread through mosquito bites, there is evidence that it can be passed from a pregnant mother to her unborn child.
The likelihood of this occurring appears to be relatively low and seems to depend on when during the pregnancy the mother contracts dengue. If a mother does contract dengue while pregnant, it could result in premature birth, low birth weight, or foetal distress in the baby.
In rare instances, the virus has been transmitted through blood products, organ donations, and transfusions. It has also been discovered that the virus can be passed down from one generation of mosquitoes to the next.
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