Introduction The Sensation Provoking Cough (TOPIC) questionnaire, which is in the process of development, quantifies cough experiences, triggers and sensations. It currently consists of 49 descriptors, derived from face to face interview and focus groups.

Aim To evaluate if demographics, total St George’s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) and Cough Severity Diary (CSD) correlate with total TOPIC score (TTS).

Methods Adult patients with chronic cough and various respiratory diseases were recruited and compared to patients with idiopathic/refractory chronic cough. A TOPIC draft questionnaire (49 items, each with a 0–5 Likert-type response, total score range 0–245), SGRQ and CSD were completed and repeated 5–7 days later, with a Global Rating of Change (GRC).

Results A total of 52 patients (49.2% females, mean age 53.2+/-15.6) were recruited (n=17 idiopathic chronic cough, n=13 severe asthma, n=13 interstitial lung disease, n=9 cystic fibrosis). Total TOPIC score (TTS) mean 95.8 (+/-46.2). Patients with idiopathic cough had significantly higher TTS compared with cough in chronic lung disease (mean TTC=121.7 vs 83.3, p=0.004). Gender, age (r=−0.03) and FEV1% predicted (r=0.18) were not statistically significant correlated with TTS (p=0.91, p=0.82, p=0.22, respectively). TTS demonstrated high levels internal consistency (alpha) of 0.94 and test re-test reliability of 0.94 (p<0.001); suggesting that some items could be removed in subsequent stages. TTS correlated with total SGRQ score (r=0.32, p=0.02), in particular with SGRQ’s symptoms score (r=0.44, p=0.001) and impacts score (r=0.61, p<0.001), but not with SGRQ’s activity score (r=0.19, p=0.17). A significant relationship was found between TTS and total CSD score (r=0.56, p<0.001).

Conclusion Our preliminary data suggests that current TOPIC questionnaire items have value in discriminating idiopathic chronic cough from cough associated with chronic lung disease. Further data will be collected across different patient groups to identify the best items to retain in the final questionnaire. The TOPIC questionnaire may be a useful tool to quantify sensations or triggers of cough and may help us to better understand cough mechanism.