Narcotic preparations are medicines that primarily induce sleep. The basic three narcotics are morphine, codeine, and thebaine. Mucokinetics are drugs that clear mucus from the lungs, airways, trachea, and bronchi. Mucokinetics can be divided into expectorants, mucolytic agents, and surfactants.
Expectorant signals the body to amplify the quantity or hydration of secretions, thereby resulting into clearer secretions. As a byproduct, expectorant lubricates the respiratory tract. Guaifenesin, an expectorant is commonly used in many cough syrups. The term ‘expectorant’ is often extended to all cough medicines, as it is a universal constituent.

Cough is an abrupt and frequently occurring involuntary or voluntary reflex of our body in order to clear any unfamiliar material from the respiratory tract. Recurrent coughing is often associated with a variety of respiratory diseases, microbial infections, and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD). Coughing is a communicable disease which gets transmitted through bacteria and viruses to the unaffected person. Cough medicines are medicines that are used during coughing and related conditions. Prescription narcotic cough preparations and expectorants are cough medicines that are narcotic in nature, and are supposed to be consumed only when prescribed by a physician.
Narcotic drugs such as codeine, tussiden, hydrocodone, dihydrocodeine, hydromorphone, duraganidin, Hydrostat, Guaifenesin, and Cheratussin, are some of the brands suggested for cough treatment. Narcotic drugs primarily target the nervous system and may have severe side effects. Therefore, drugs are generally not prescribed to children below the age of 6 years. According to a report published in CNN Health in 2014, more than 8 billion codeine prescriptions are written in the U.S. each year. Narcotics may have side effects such as vomiting, rashes, allergy and constipation. Elevated occurrences of diseases and allergies will drive the future growth of the prescription narcotic cough preparations and expectorants market.

Market Taxonomy

On the basis of type of cough, the global market is classified into:

o Acute cough
o Chronic cough

On the basis of end user, the global market is classified into:

o Government and Private Hospitals
o Medical Practitioners
o Others

According to a report by National Center for Biotechnology Information, acute cough comes under top five complications of general practice. Acute cough or acute bronchitis is the fifth most frequent presentation in Australia and the U.S. Moreover, the report also suggests that in the U.K. almost 50 persons out of 100 suffer from acute cough. Moreover, acute cough results into to 10 ambulatory visits per 1000 patient, in the U.S. each year. Substantiation from general practice intelligence and the U.K. and U.S. morbidity surveys demonstrate that the cases of acute cough are increasing at an alarming rate. Therefore, the overall prescription narcotic cough preparations and expectorants market is expected to grow proportionately.

Rising incidences of pertussis will drive the overall prescription narcotic cough preparations and expectorants market

Pertussis or whooping cough is a respiratory disease which is highly contagious in nature. Uncontrollable and violent coughing can lead to death in extreme conditions. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report, in 2014, 32,971 cases of whooping cough were reported. This is a 15% increase as compared 28,639 cases reported in 2013. The increased rate of pertussis was observed mostly in the adolescents (13 to 15 years). Pertussis is a condition that needs physician’s advice for treatment, thereby increasing the demand for prescription narcotic cough treatment market. Additionally, babies are affected by cough and in some cases this might become fatal. Increased awareness, availability of advanced drugs, and adoption of early detection and prevention of diseases will fuel the growth of the overall prescription narcotic cough preparations and expectorants market.

Major manufacturers in the market compete on the basis of price, and technology (research and development activities). Some of the major players operating in the prescription narcotic cough preparations and expectorants market are Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Franklin Laboratories Pvt. Ltd., Pans Laboratories, Synokem Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Lyka Hetero Healthcare Limited, Biomedica International, Klar Sehen Pvt. Ltd., and Ciron Drugs & Pharmaceuticals Pvt. Ltd.

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