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GERD & Acid Reflux
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Posted 9/9/2012 1:36 AM (GMT 0)
First, let me say I was diagnosed with Acid Reflux in December 2011 but am not on any meds for it, just TUMS.  I developed a cough in May 2012 which seemed bronchial in nature.  I would cough so hard my ribs would get sore.  I also coughed up a yellow-phlegm.  My family doc treated it like a bacterial infection with a round of antibiotics.  It seemed to get better for a few days then came back again.  My doc then tried a round of Prednisone which seemed to help again for a few days, then cough came back again.

Cough drops seemed to help which defied logic that it was acid reflux cough since cough drops usually don't help.

I next went to a pulmonologist who thought the same thing and tried another round of Prednisone.  Same effect.  Cough went away for a week then came back again.

Next I went for asthma testing which showed I do not have asthma.

On a regular check up with my ENT, he concluded the cough was Acid Reflux related and put me on Zantac 150 twice a day.  The cough seems to have gone away now.

Sometimes I would lose my voice with the cough too.

Has anyone else had any problems with chronic cough with Acid Reflux?

Robyn

Posted 9/9/2012 1:58 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Robyn,

Yes, indeed, cough and lung involvement can be caused by reflux.  In fact, I had a Nissen surgery three and a half years ago because of lung problems created by my reflux.  I have asthma, and while my reflux wasn't horrible, it apparently was enough to create dangerously unhealthy lungs.

Post-Nissen my lungs are healthy and back to normal.  I still have asthma due to allergies, but I don't have the lung problems that created a need for high doses of inhaled and oral steroids.  My lungs were so unhealthy that I was on enough steroids to cause permanent damage to my skin (it tears and bruises very easily).  I just wish I'd had the surgery sooner.

Good luck!

Denise

Posted 9/10/2012 11:55 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks, Denise. You were the first one to respond to me a while back when I was new here. I recall reading your in-depth story of your journey, but one question. Did you have asthma before you realized you had acid reflux or did the reflux cause the asthma?
Posted 9/11/2012 12:37 AM (GMT 0)
http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijol/2012/646901/

Lilred08 this article was very helpful to us and explained so much about reflux in the throat and lung involvement. Hope this helps This is an ongoing journey to learn what helps us most. Wish you the best. Bumper!
Posted 9/11/2012 12:42 AM (GMT 0)
http://www.fauquierent.net/nonacidreflux.htm

This also explains LPR in a language that helped me. Don't know if this is your concern or not but I feel that knowledge helps us to ask the physician more questions. Bumper!
Posted 9/11/2012 1:56 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Robyn,

I had asthma long before I had acid reflux...even as a child.  I'm highly allergic to pollens, and still am struggling to get my allergies under control. 

My asthma got worse and it took some time for my doctors to realize that reflux was the cause.  I was even hospitalized for a bout of reflux created by gastritis when I took an antibiotic.  I've been on PPIs for at least 15 years, but for about 5 years or so before my surgery, my asthma got completely out of control, no matter how many PPIs and Zantacs I took.  My PCP told me that it was a life-threatening situation, and I needed the surgery.

It took a long time to get my GI doc to take the situation seriously, because my reflux wasn't very bad.  My asthma doc says that reflux doesn't need to be very bad to cause lung problems. Finally he referred me to a surgeon and the rest is history.  I just wish I'd had the surgery sooner. 

Good luck with deciding what to do.

Best wishes,

Denise

Posted 9/12/2012 12:05 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks, Denise,and Pat I will definitely check out those sites. Since all my asthmas tests and chest Xrays are normal, I'll follow the path I'm on of Zantac and watching diet, etc. What I miss the most is coffee. I've been drinking it since I was 12 and I'm 48 now but I'm slowly realizing I can find other things, like tea, that don't make me feel bad and learn to like them just as much.
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