Health Library / Seasonal & local
Winter air in Lucknow: the cough that will not go, and which tests help
· 5 min read · Lucknow
Air quality across north India, Lucknow included, deteriorates markedly through the winter months. Cooler air traps pollutants closer to the ground, and the result is a season of sore throats, persistent coughs and worsened asthma that arrives on schedule every year.
Most of it settles. The question worth answering is which cough is the season and which is something that needs looking at.
What poor air actually does
Fine particulate matter is small enough to reach deep into the lungs and cause inflammation in the airways. In a healthy adult that usually means throat irritation, a dry cough, and eyes that sting.
In someone with asthma or COPD it does more: it triggers flare-ups, increases medication need, and is a common reason for winter hospital admissions. Children, older adults, pregnant women and anyone with existing heart or lung disease feel it first and worst.
When to investigate a cough
A cough lasting more than three weeks deserves review, and in India that threshold matters for a specific reason: tuberculosis remains common, is very treatable, and is routinely missed early because a persistent cough gets attributed to dust, smoking or the season.
These are the features that move a cough from watchful waiting to investigation.
- Cough persisting beyond three weeks
- Coughing blood — always, immediately
- Fever, night sweats, or unexplained weight loss
- Breathlessness that is new or worsening
- Chest pain, or a wheeze that will not settle
- Known asthma or COPD needing much more reliever than usual
Which tests, and what they answer
A chest X-ray is the usual first step and answers a lot: infection, tuberculosis changes, and the state of the lung fields. A CBC and CRP indicate whether there is an active inflammatory or infective process. Where tuberculosis is suspected, sputum testing and molecular TB testing are the confirming tests, and molecular methods are considerably faster than waiting on culture alone.
Spirometry measures how much and how fast you can breathe out, and is what distinguishes asthma from COPD and tracks either over time. If you have been on an inhaler for years without ever having had spirometry, that is worth raising with your doctor.
Charak runs digital X-ray, spirometry and the associated pathology in one building at Chowk, which for a winter chest workup usually means one visit rather than three.
This article is general health information, not a diagnosis or a treatment plan. Test results are read alongside your symptoms and history — please discuss yours with your doctor. See our disclaimer.
