Unexpected and Unintended Cure of Habit Cough by Proxy

In 1966, Dr. Bernie Berman, a Boston allergist, described 6 children with a chronic cough that could be stopped by “the art of suggestion.” Dr. Berman called this a Habit Cough. This disorder has been repeatedly described, sometimes with different terminology, but with the same description of the characteristic sound of the cough, barking or honking, and the absence of the cough once asleep.2,3,4,5,6,7,8 The frequency of Habit Cough diagnoses were reported at the rates of 7 per year at the University of Iowa6 and 9 per year at the Brompton Hospital in London England,7 respectively.

Source: Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology - August 21, 2019 Category: Allergy & Immunology Authors: Miles Weinberger Tags: Letters Source Type: research