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cough asthma?????
Question:
Is there such a think as cough asthma? My wife is continuously clearing her throat as if something was irritating it. It’s not a cough per se but more like a loud clearing sound that comes from the lower depths of the lungs…and it goes on and on and on.
I have ‘cough variant asthma’ and these are classic symptoms. It is treated the same way as ‘regular’ asthma. She should ask for a referral to an allergist or a pulmonolgst to get screened for asthma.
Response:
Yes, it could be asthma. Sounds to me like post nasal drip is more likely. I would aggressively treat her nose with nasal steroids and anti-histamines to see if it gets better. If neither the post nasal drip nor the asthma theory pans out you may want to look at reflux from the stomach. One other thing to keep in mind is that the throat clearing can be self reinforcing. The cough causes irritation which causes cough and so on. A trial of a strong anti-tussive may be worth while at some point just to break the cycle, but I think I would look for a cause before resorting to this. — Good Luck, CBI, M.D. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Is there such a think as cough asthma? My wife is continuously clearing her throat as if something was irritating it. It’s not a cough per se but more like a loud clearing sound that comes from the lower depths of the lungs…and it goes on and on and on. I am ready for the luney bin. Usually the "hacking", as I call it, tapers off when she goes to bed but lately she might wake up "hacking" Any ideas, thoughts, comments, suggestions, etc. Do you know what medication is best for it? She has had x-rays, a light put down her throat, etc. and there is no physical obstructions according to the doctors. Her specialist indicated it might be Thank you.
Response:
Is there such a think as cough asthma? My wife is continuously clearing her throat as if something was irritating it. It’s not a cough per se but more like a loud clearing sound that comes from the lower depths of the lungs…and it goes on and on and on. I am ready for the luney bin. Usually the "hacking", as I call it, tapers off when she goes to bed but lately she might wake up "hacking" Any ideas, thoughts, comments, suggestions, etc. Do you know what medication is best for it? She has had x-rays, a light put down her throat, etc. and there is no physical obstructions according to the doctors. Her specialist indicated it might be Thank you.
Response:
Is there such a think as cough asthma? My wife is continuously clearing her throat as if something was irritating it. It’s not a cough per se but more like a loud clearing sound that comes from the lower depths of the lungs…and it goes on and on and on. I am ready for the luney bin. Usually the "hacking", as I call it, tapers off when she goes to bed but lately she might wake up "hacking" Any ideas, thoughts, comments, suggestions, etc. Do you know what medication is best for it? She has had x-rays, a light put down her throat, etc. and there is no physical obstructions according to the doctors. Her specialist indicated it might be Thank you.
Yes, there is ‘cough variant asthma’. Coughing instead of wheezing. The treatment is the same as regular asthma; Ventolin inhaler for rescue, Pulmicort or Flovent inhalers for prevention. Sometimes Sinusitis is involved; post nasal drip getting into lungs causing cough variant asthma. Sinusitis is diagnosed with x-ray/CT scan of the head. [GERD (reflux) is sometimes involved] Often a trial of asthma meds is given; if they help it tends to support an asthma diagnosis. She may benefit from referral to specialists; allergist, pulmonologist, ENT (ear, nose, throat doctor) Here are some links: http://www.ama-assn.org/special/asthma/library/scan/interp.htm Interpretation of Positive Results of a Methacholine Inhalation Challenge and 1 Week of Inhaled Bronchodilator use in Diagnosing and Treating Cough-Variant Asthma JAMA http://www.vh.org/Providers/TeachingFiles/PulmonaryCoreCurric/Chronic… Virtual Hospital (UIowa) http://www.mayohealth.org/mayo/9411/htm/cough.htm Cough (Mayo) http://www.mayohealth.org/mayo/9711/htm/coughs.htm Treating Coughs (Mayo) http://www.aaaai.org/public/publicedmat/tips/tip31.html Tip 31: Cough http://www.ama-assn.org/special/asthma/treatmnt/updates/sinus.htm Asthma and Sinusitis 11-97 JAMA Ellis
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