What Does A Cough With Green Mucus Mean?

What happens if a cough is accompanied by green phlegm? Is it always an infection that needs to be treated with antibiotics?

This bodily fluid is secreted in mammals by the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract and, according to bibliographic sources, has the function of maintaining air humidity.

Mucus also traps foreign substances and facilitates the expulsion of these substances from your body. Since it also contains lysozymes (antibacterial substances) and antibodies, we can say that it has antimicrobial properties.

Strange as it may seem, the color of the mucus can reveal the nature of the patient’s illness. In this article we will tell you what it means and we mainly talk about what it means when the mucus has a greenish color. We also explain which steps you need to take.

The different colors of slime

As unpleasant as it may seem, it is essential to understand where the color of mucus comes from and why when this color change occurs, it is essential for detecting various diseases.

Medical organizations pay attention to the meaning of the following variations:

• Green or yellow: Indicative of bronchitis, cystic fibrosis, pneumonia, or sinusitis.
• Brown: Indicative of bronchitis, cystic fibrosis, lung abscess (pus-filled cavity in the lung), pneumonia, or pneumoconiosis (lung infiltration of mineral substances).
• White: Indicates bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), congestive heart failure, or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).

• Black: a sign of a fungal infection (fungus in the respiratory tract), lung abscess, pneumoconiosis and tobacco use.
• Red: a sign of conditions involving internal bleeding of the airways, such as the abscesses already described, tuberculosis or lung cancer.

As we have seen, the color of the mucus shows what the immune system is trying to expel from the body.

For example, a cough accompanied by brown phlegm may mean that the patient has inhaled dirt or mineral compounds for an extended period of time. It can also indicate that there is dried blood (Spanish link) in part of the airways.

A red color in some cases can indicate a serious illness. It can show that there is bleeding in a part of the body that is in contact with the nasal cavity and mouth.

In the next section we will focus on the topic of this article: What does a cough with green mucus mean? Here’s the answer.

A Cough With Green Mucus: What Does It Mean?

As we have already mentioned, the presence of green mucus when you cough indicates that the body is fighting an infection.

As paradoxical as it may seem, this greenish discoloration is due to the high number of dead white blood cells and other substances derived from fighting the virus or bacteria. The most common infections that cause this mucus are the following.

Acute bronchitis and green mucus

According to research (Spanish link), acute bronchitis is the most common diagnosis in people with cough who visit outpatient clinics. In this case, we are dealing with an infection of viral origin, since rhinoviruses (which cause colds) are the cause in 90% of cases.

Although not very common, we should also point out that some bronchitis is caused by bacteria. According to the source cited above, 32% of patients with a cough lasting longer than two weeks are infected with the Bordetella pertussis bacteria.

Some added symptoms are as follows:

• Chestpain.
• Fatigue.

• Fever.
• Shortness of breath and wheezing.

Cystic fibrosis

In this case, we are faced with a much more aggressive and serious disease than the previous one. This is in fact associated with a certain risk of mortality (up to 1.33 per million inhabitants, according to studies – Spanish link).

The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF, in the Netherlands the NCFS) reports that this disease is hereditary and is characterized by a malfunctioning of the exocrine glands.

In a normal situation, the glands produce mucus, saliva and other fluids that help the body function normally. In patients with cystic fibrosis or cystic fibrosis, this mucus is too thick, causing the lungs and intestines to become blocked. A cough with persistent greenish mucus tries to get rid of this thick, dysfunctional mucus.

Other important facts about this disease are:

• It’s not contagious.
• To this day it is still not curable.
• It occurs in one in 3,200 babies.

Pneumonia

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), pneumonia is responsible for 15% of all deaths in children under the age of five. It is a disease caused by an infection, virus, bacteria or fungus. Again, a cough with green mucus is indicative of the immunological battle against these microorganisms.

Some of the microorganisms that cause it include the bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae , Haemophilus influenza type b, the pathogenic fungus Pneumocystis Jiroveci, and the respiratory syncytial virus. The patient’s alveoli fill with fluid and pus during pneumonia. This makes breathing painful and limits oxygen intake.

Sinusitis

A cough with green mucus is also typical of sinusitis of bacterial origin. According to statistical studies (Spanish link) conducted in the United States, this condition affects approximately 31 million patients per year.

In this case, the pathogenic bacteria settle in the sinuses, causing nasal congestion, expulsion of mucus, and pain or pressure in the areas around the nose and eyes.

How do you deal with a cough with green mucus?

As we have seen, a cough with green mucus can indicate an immune response to an infection or an inherited disease, such as cystic fibrosis. Many natural remedies can help relieve throat irritation, but medical treatments may be necessary depending on the severity of the condition.

In many cases, airway therapies are not required because they are self-reliant. This means that the patient’s immune system can handle the invasion on its own. The body will normally be free of symptoms within about a week.

In other cases, it may be necessary to use antibiotic inhalers to open the narrowed airways of the lungs, and even surgical intervention may be necessary.

The decision is made by the specialist treating the condition. That is why it is important to see a doctor if you experience any problems.