Development of a Cough Control Questionnaire (CCQ)

This study will involve 3 phases:

• Phase 1: Literature review. Review of currently available validated tools to assess control in respiratory diseases.
• Phase 2: Development of Cough Control Questionnaire (CCQ). Patient focus groups will aid development of a conceptual framework of cough control and ensure content validity through qualitative research methods including thematic analysis. Expert panel review of cough control framework will also be undertaken. CCQ item development will be grounded in patient focus groups and expert review findings, and reviewed through cognitive debrief with patients.
• Phase 3: Validation of CCQ. Prospective consecutive patients with chronic cough will complete CCQ, cough severity assessments and health status assessments. Patients will be invited to undergo objective cough frequency monitoring and cough challenge testing.

Inclusion criteria

• Adult patients aged 18 and over with acute and chronic cough (including refractory chronic cough and unexplained chronic cough) and able to read and write in English. A smaller number (n =20) of healthy volunteers will also be included with no evidence of significant respiratory disease.

Exclusion criteria

• Current smokers (or smoking within the last 12 months), respiratory tract infection within the last 4 weeks, use of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi), and pregnancy