Wandering if anyone has ever had a cough that doctors couldn't figure out. My mother has now had a cough for about a year that causes her to cough so much that she gets sick. At first we thought it was a cold. She has tried all sorts of over the counter cough and allergy medicine and when those didn't work she set up an appointment with her doctor. He tried throwing all sorts of medications and steriods at it and nothing worked. She has now gone to a Pulmonary Specialist who couldn't figure it out and now has been sent to an Allergy Specialist. Does anyone have any info on alternative treatments that might work. What about acupuncture? I have heard it helps with stress but are there health benefits as well? At this point we are up for just about anything. Open to suggestions.
I know it has been a while since this was posted but I had received so many responses I wanted to make sure I did an update. So about a month after I posted this my mother started having pain in her leg, her dr thought it was hamstring and sent her to a sports dr who did an xray and found that she had a tumor on her femur. In fact so bad that if she put any weight on it he was concerned it would break. She set an appt with a specialist for Tuesday. That weekend her leg broke while she was sitting in her chair and she was rushed to the hospital. Spent a month or so there while drs ran tests. Long story short they found that she has stage 4 lung cancer. I believe the proper name is non circle cell or small cell lung cancer. It's rare, only 20% of lung cancer patients have this type and out of those 20%, 80% have never smoked and are female aka my mother. It is developed from either second hand smoke, exposure to esbestic or environment. She is now battling the cancer with Chemo and Radiation. Drs have said that most patients with this cancer barely make it 8 mths after diagnosis bc normally not found till stage 4. The tumor was behind her heart so not seen on chest xrays. Positive, a couple of weeks ago she had a check up and the tumor has shrunk but still no date when Chemo will end. Thank you to everyone who responded to this posting. Yall are wonderful.
When it happened to me it was acid reflux. I didn't recognize the symptoms at all. The cough was the throat making mucus to try and protect the damaged tissues from the acid that came up when I would sleep at night. I had to be on prilosec for nearly a year to finally be well all the way. But I did get relief in just a few weeks. I would feel better, stop taking them, it would come back and the cycle would start over.
Could mold be some where? I had a horrible cough for 10 weeks and we discovered thic black mold in the vents.
Has she been tested for pertussis (whooping cough)? It's very common in this area, even among vaccinated people. The test and treatment are both very simple.
Is she on any blood pressure medicines? Some blood pressure medicines can cause a constant, nagging cough....there are several different types of bp medicines and the ones that cause the problems for some people are called Ace Inhibitors. I was taking Lisinopril and had trouble with a persistant cough, we treated it with inhalers, etc...but then the doctor took me off of the Lisinopril and switched me to Micardis...the cough is GONE!!!
My Mother had the same issue several years before her death...she couldn't even carry on a conversation because of the constant coughing. Her doctors nurse happened to ask her what kind of BP medicine she was on....mystery solved!!! I hope this is the situation with your Mother because it is a very easy way to solve the problem!!
I had a problem with acid reflux, and I was asperating small amounts of stomach acid every night which caused chronic bronchitis and recurrent bouts of pnemonia. After a sleep study and C-pap treatment and good treatment of the acid, I don't have the problem any more.
Has everything been ruled out that could be more serious? I don't mean to be an alarmist, but I have had two relatives with coughs, and each had an un diagnosed mataisticed cancer (different kinds) and because they only complained about the cough, their cancers were missed. It might be worth it to have a full work up.
M.
I would like to second two other things that were mentioned.
Neither one life threatening......
1) Certain blood pressure medications, for whatever reason, can result in a nagging cough. I know several women that keep lemon drops (candy) on hand to keep the backs of their throats moist and help with the cough
2) My son got a nagging cough and he would start to choke and throw up. It happened every day. I thought he had the flu at first...he had all kinds of tests. It was acid reflux. They put him on a medication for it and his coughing and vomitting stopped literally within 2 days. He doesn't even take the medication anymore. He sleeps slightly propped up and doesn't eat anything with too many spices after a certain time in the evening and he's perfectly fine. I'm not kidding...he went from coughing and barfing every day to zero. He didn't have asthma, pneumonia, allergies, his lungs were clear...
it was his stomach.
I hope you find out what's going on and it's something simple that can be remedied.
Best wishes!
I had this 2 years ago. I was the same. A non-productive cough.. I remember it started as a cold and then I thought it was allergies.. It went on for over a year..
I would cough until my eyes would water and I could not catch my breath, sometimes, I would vomit.. It was frustrating and embarrassing..I started avoiding movies and concerts or made sure I had a big bag of cough drops and sat on an aisle seat so I could leave the room if I started the coughing. ..
Finally one of my best friends told me I needed to see her acupuncturist.
Now I will tell you, I am not into all of that new age stuff and usually my eyes glaze over when people suggest anything instead of traditional physician, but I was so desperate, I went..
She was what I expected a new agey kind of person. She asked a lot of questions and then she waved her hands over me. She placed her hands on my chest and told me she knew that this "dark thing" was in my chest and she could help. She did the acupuncture and gave me instructions to begin breathing deeper and blowing out long strong breaths. She said I had been breathing too shallow.. She also gave me some natural herbal drops to begin taking. She told me very soon I would feel relief.
On about the second or third morning while brushing my teeth I felt this strong pressure like something stuck in my throat, I breathed in (it was hard to do with this pressure) and then let out a long slow breath and I kid you not, this thing in my throat felt like I blew it out and from then on I did not have that cough! I was astounded.
I am sorry your mom has been suffering with this, I began to think it was all in my head..
The Acupuncturist name is Kay Streich ###-###-####
Have you had her tested for a gluten allergy? My daughter had a cough for 7+ months before other symtoms showed up (stomach aches). Turned out after we went to a naturopath she was diagnosed with gluten intolerance...still not fully accepted by her MD.. but a gluten free diet has solved the problem
Have they checked her lungs (cat scans or something like that). I don't want to scare you just could be that they missed something...possibly a tumor. Hopefully that's not the case. Just figured it's worth mentioning as my mom had lung cancer and had a persistent cough and eventually they discovered what it was.
My guess would be allergies, but if she has tried allergy meds then it may not be. Especially right now, allergens can give a little tickle in the throat. I gave my daughter childrens Claritan and it worked. Sorry for her discomfort. Hope she finds out soon.
I have done acupuncture, but for back pain. You will need to ask a certified acupuncturist if they think it will help. It is now covered by the AMA and your doc. can write a prescription. However, I would suggest taking a close look at your mother's diet and also at her environment (cleaning products, carpeting, upholstery, vinyl blinds, furniture, pillows, mattress, cat or dog dander, HVAC system should be inspected twice a year)--anything that you think could trigger her cough. Medications only mask the problem, but won't get to the root of why your poor mother is coughing. Also, get a carbon monoxide detector. You can pick one up at Target, Walgreens, Wal-Mart, etc. Get one that plugs in that has a battery back up. My neighbor had a problem with her gas hot water heater that triggered a reaction in her and her dogs! I hope this helps.
I had a cough that would last for several months and would come every year since I was a child. I've tried every medication under the sun and saw countless doctors. I was told it was asthma and was on many medications, but it still came every year and lasted for 3-4 months. Finally, I saw a new pulmonologist that suggested that it may be post-nasal drip. He told me to use NeilMed Sinus Rinse twice a day and it would help. He was right. I have been using the sinus rinse for about a year now, and within days of starting it, my cough went away and has not come back. Simple solution to years of frustration for me. It's a cheap, natural solution to something that medication can't help. I would suggest trying it. You can buy it at any local drug store.
It looks like you have already got a lot of good answers. Is she on any medications? My father is on many different meds and he has a horrible cough. The doctors didn't know why so he researched all the meds he was on. He found that one of his meds has a side effect of coughing. He brought it up with his doctor and she was like "oh yea...that could be it". Apparently she forgot or something (maybe didn't know?).
Did the pulmonary doctor send her for a breathing test? Lung xrays? Maybe get a second opinion from another pulmonary doctor. She could also see an internist. Good luck
My daughter had a little cough for a year and we finally figured out it was allergies. She was given a nose spray and allergy meds and it finally went away. We now just give her allergy meds when her nose starts to run clear. No coughing since!
has your mother ever had a exam of her throat all the way down.? This might be the problem.
My 23-year-old daughter had a cough so bad for 2 years that she had to stop running track at Baylor. She also had to continually leave class because she was so disruptive. She went to so many specialists in Dallas and Austin and nobody could figure out what it was. They thought it started with asthma and allergies but none of the medications worked.
She finally went to a naturopathic doctor in Austin and her cough was gone in 3 weeks. Insurance didn't pay for it, but after 2 years, we were happy to pay the cost. The naturopathic doctor put her on a detox to get all the steroids and medications out of her body. She had to take all kinds of natural supplements (probiotics, digestive enzymes, etc.) at first as well to reduce all the inflammation in her body and improve her digestive tract.
Evidently she had been taking so many medications that her body finally shut down and was not processing the medicine. Her body's reaction was to cough. People have all different kinds of reactions. Hers was a deep cough.
After a couple months of all those supplements, she just has to take daily multi-vitamins and her cough has not returned. We are so grateful for the naturopathic doctor who looked for the cause instead of just treating the symptoms. My daughter is getting married soon and she won't be embarrassed with her cough.
my mother had a cough for a long time too and the doctors couldn't figure it out and nothing worked until she when to a gastritist doctor and found that she had a bacteria along with gastritist and that was causing her cough. he prescibed a 2week antibiotic consisting of 3 pills that really got rid of the cough..
Hi M.,
My dear MIL had a similar dry cough for 8 months. After much testing, her issue turned out to be some black mold growing on the air conditioning registers (the metal covers in the ceiling) AND allergy problems. They killed the mold using a bleach and soap solution. She took an over the counter allergy medication for several weeks. She made certain to stay well hydrated, too. She is now absolutely fine.
As you can see from the different email ideas, there are many possible causes. I hope you find the combination that works for your mother.
Take care,
Parent Coach J. B
my first thought was allergies. my parents moved. my mom found out she was allergic to the ceder trees!!! coughed all the time. i would suggest going to a ear nose and throat specialist. just to check every thing out. hope she is ok soon.
This could have been me. I had the same type cough after having strep throat in March after my grandson had it.My Dr. finally gave up and sent me to a pulmonologist. Did he check her from reflux and do a breathing challenge test? Turns out I have asthma at 62. I've been on medicine since last Wednesday and it is helping.
What about heart burn. I know when I get it bad, it makes me cough to no end!
My mom also started a weird chronic cough after she started a new blood pressure medicine. She changed meds and the cough went away. I hope your mom's cough is resolved as easily. Good luck!
I coughed on and off for years before I was correctly diagnosed with asthma that was being triggered by a large number of substances I was allergic to. My family doctor just called it bronchitis and threw antibiotics at it, but when I finally went to and allergy & asthma specialist, he tested me, and it turned out I was allergic to all kinds of pollens, molds, dust, and cat dander (I've always owned cats). After 3 years of allergy shots, none of these things bother me anymore. You can develop allergies suddenly, so maybe she should be tested.
Also, the only thing that now aggravates my asthma are strong fragrances, in particular air fresheners. Does she use a lot of air fresheners in her home? Especially those really powerful plug ins? Those chemicals are very irritating, and quite toxic. If you do some research about them, you'd never allow them in your home or around your kids.
Just some possibilities about what could cause her coughing.
Hello there,
Does she happen to be on medication for high blood pressure? If so, she may want to ask for a different prescription, both my mother and my husband had a major coughing problem due to high blood pressure medication. Once they got different meds, problem went away.
Good luck,
I would take a list of all medications both prescription and over the counter to your pharmacist. They can look at it and tell you if coughing is a side effect of something you are taking. Try to go on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday early in the day but not when they first open. They will have more time to research the meds for you. Or ask if you can leave the list and have them call you when they get a chance to research it for you. My aunt had this problem for over a year. She happened to mention it to my husband, who is a pharmacist, he asked what medicine she was taking. One of the medicine's common effect was coughing. Although she had mentioned this to several of her doctors none of them made the connection between coughing and her meds.
has she been checked for cancer dont mean to scare you and hopefully I am wrong. a pulmonologist would have found asthma and steroids would have helped it so asthma is out. heat such as a hot shower or hot tea helps an asthma cough but it might not work on her since it is not asthma. worth a try though.
I'm with the blood pressure meds people! I take Lisinopril and a few months after I started taking it I got a cough that would not go away. The heart dr. dismissed my idea that it might be caused by the BP meds even though the insert said it was a possibility. I coughed randomly and pretty much daily for an entire year.It was a dry cough and the only thing that helped was water or a cough drop. Something to wet my throat. My ObGYN was like "Oh, yes. Very common side effect!" (I have found my ObGyn to be more aware of side effects from meds than the doctors who prescribe them.) Eventually it stopped. Now I only occasionally will have a coughing bout- but it is no big deal. Every day for a year though was ANNOYING!
