Anti-Cough Effects of Tramadol in Patients with Pertussis.

Background and purpose: Severe, tormenting and long-term coughing in patients suffering from pertussis causes disturbances in their and their families' daily activity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of Tramadol on alleviating coughing and severity of symptoms in pertussis patients. Materials and methods: Sixty cases of adult pertussis patients based on WHO and CDC guidelines were included in the study. Based on the severity of their clinical symptoms, they were divided into moderate and severe groups. The case group received Azithromycine, Cetirizine and Tramadol but the control group received only Azithromycine and Cetirizine. Results: The case group consisted of 13 male (43.33%) and 17 female (56.66%) patients: sixteen cases had severe and 14 cases moderate symptoms. The control group consisted of 14 male (46.66%) and 16 female (53.33%) patients: 17 cases had severe and 13 cases moderate symptoms. After one week of treatment in the case group, 7 cases were severe (22.33%) and 6 cases were moderate (20%) (p<0.05) but in the control group 43.33% were severe and 33.33% were moderate (p<0.05). Conclusion: A faster and more suitable reduction in clinical symptoms, especially coughing, using tramadol with an appropriate dose, can result in an improvement in patients' quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]