Cough mixture appears limited use

Alert parents know that small children should not take over-the-counter cough medications. Now researchers say the stuff might not help adults much, either.

Over-the-counter medicine is commonly and casually used by millions of cold sufferers every year, but there is no good evidence for or against the effectiveness of OTC cough medicines, concludes a new systematic review of studies.

"I do not give my kids over-the-counter cough medicine," said Thomas Fahey, professor of general practice at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Medical School and review co-author. "I do not advise my patients to do so."

In their review, Fahey and colleagues looked at both children- and adult-focused studies. Some reported that OTC cough medicines helped patients; others said they did not. With conflicting evidence, the various studies presented a non-cohesive picture.