Viral Bronchitis (TMI)

Factual Questions
1

Hey
I know, I know, specific medical questions, etc. etc. but I am just looking for facts not medical advice, and besides I already saw a doctor, and anybody answering in this thread is NOT providing direct medical advice and are not my doctor, etc. etc. .

Background:

About 5 weeks ago I got a bad cold for a day or two. Felt like flu (i.e. had trouble getting out of bed and up the stairs, everything…so…heavy…) but probably just a bad cold. I had a runny nose, sore throat, and a little cough. Now, it’s been 5 weeks and the cough didn’t go away and actually got worse, and I got terrible fatigue.

Basically the only symptoms that remain is fatigue and coughing fits with greenish mucus coming up. The coughing fits are brought on by inhaling deeply. The fatigue is pretty bad because I have trouble getting up in the morning and yesterday I actually fell asleep in the shower.

I saw a doctor today because I’ve had enough. She listened to my lungs very carefully and said she couldn’t hear anything and my lungs sound very clear. She prescribed some heavy duty cough medication (codeine + promethazine syrup) and said to come back in 7 days if symptoms don’t improve or I develop a fever.
She suggested it could be viral, but didn’t order any X-Rays to ascertain otherwise.

I’m in my 20’s. I don’t smoke. I have a history of pneumonia (pretty serious case about 3 years ago).

Questions

a) Is it common for a viral bronchitis to last for months like this?

b) Is it common for a viral bronchitis to cause severe fatigue?

c) My mother had a very bad case of pneumonia that went undetected for 6 months because the doctors couldn’t hear anything with the stethoscope when she was about my age. Apparently the pneumonia was localized to an area that’s “unhearable”. Does susceptibility to pneumonia run in the family?

d) If I am not better in 7 days how do I address my concerns that this could be hard-to-detect pneumonia to my doctor without sounding like an arrogant jerk who watched too much Discovery Health?

e) Any other ideas about anything related to this?
Thanks guys,

  • Groman
2

Disclaimer: I am NOT an M.D. These comments are based solely on my experiences and research, and are suggestions to groman to pursue further medical advice:
A constant cough for that long and green mucus suggests further tests are in order, and at a minimum, you should have a chest x-ray. Talk to your doc again and be firm about the x-ray (but I wouldn’t tell her that an SDMB doper recommended it). If she won’t do it, I’d change doctors. I don’t even know if bronchitis shows up on a chest x-ray, but it should be done anyway, since there are other possiblities. For all my adult life, I had a severe bout of bronchitis at least once a year and (strangely, it seems) it got milder as I got older, even though I smoked. I’ve quit smoking and haven’t had bronchitis in years. My doctors never gave me antibiotics for it – doesn’t help viral infections. Now, I suppose bronchitis can manifest differently in different people, but my severest symptoms lasted only 2-3 days; yeah, I felt run down, and it always meant taking a few days off work, and I felt like I was coughing up my lungs, but after a week or so, I felt fine. There are several good sites out there that can give you info-- WebMD is a good one; goggle “bronchitis” or “pneumonia” or “pulmonary diseases” and you’ll get lots of sites. I’m interested in knowing how this turns out, and if I can be any more help, please e-mail me at: shirleycat@bellsouth.net

3

X-rays don’t tell you if it’s viral or bacterial, they just show how much of your lung is affected.
I had bronchitis for more than 6 weeks once (couldn’t afford the office visit :smack: ), it became asthmatic bronchitis, and I permanently damaged my lungs, I’m a straight-up asthma sufferer now :frowning: .

The fatigue is from the decrease in lung function (IANAD!) and the coughing fits can really take a lot out of you (TMI, I once coughed so hard that I blew out the blood vessels in my eyes (petechial hemorrhage) cheaper than the scary contact lenses and VERY scary the first time ya look in the mirror!)

I’ll leave the meds to the Doctors, but here’s some lung clearing tips
Steam, turn the shower on full blast (hot only) and breath it in for a while, helps loosen the goo up.
Try coughing AFTER a full exhale, you’ll bring up more goo, be really careful not to pass-out, I haven’t yet, but I have seen stars :eek: !

4

Did you tell your doctor exactly what you have told us here - a history of your problems and your mothers should make a difference to a diagnosis.

5

I am certianly not a doctor, but I can tell you that several years ago my parents and I caught a nasty case of tracheal bronchitis over the winter holidays and it did indeed lay us very low for a long time. Even once we felt better, a trip to the grocery store could wipe us out entirely. It’s definately the sickest I’ve been for several years.

6

Mostly, I forgot to mention my mother’s history.

I often get this nagging feeling that even though the doctors and nurses are writing things down and responding to them, they’re just too overworked to actually think about every single patient in perspective. She remarked about my past history of pneumonia and said “even though it’s been 5 weeks I’m still hoping it’s viral”. That kind of threw me off. Do doctors often say things like that?

7

I don’t think a doctor should say something so ambiguous, which just leaves the patient with questions. And I hope you’re asking her questions and pushing for something specific. If she can’t figure out what it is, and you’re still suffering and going without treatment, she should refer you to a pulmonary specialist.

8

I don’t think a doctor should say something so ambiguous, which just leaves the patient with questions. And I hope you’re asking her questions and pushing for something specific. If she can’t figure out what it is, and you’re still suffering and going without treatment, she should refer you to a pulmonary specialist. I’ve been having a cough at night with white mucus, and the first thing my doctor did was refer me for a chest x-ray; that’s a pretty basic diagnostic tool and you should press her for one. My sister was having bronchitis-like symptoms (she’s a smoker), and her doctor ordered an x-ray, and referred her to a pulmonary specialist. The radiologist interpreted the x-ray findings as emphysema, but the specialist assured Sis that it wasn’t emphysema, based on his exam and knowledge of her history.

9

coughing from bronchitis can exhaust a person. try drinking water or juice every time you cough (about a dixie cup worth.). it will help.

def. push for more investigation, 5 weeks is a bit too long.