vocal cord dysfunction

hi everyone

My chest consultant doesn't think I have asthma, and I was looking on the internet for something else that might be causing these symptoms and came across vocal cord dysfunction,

Does anyone know anything about this or how it is diagnosed?

lejaya

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Hi

VCD is more common in women and usually starts in late teens early 20's. It is where the vocal cords move in the opposite way they should do during a vcd attack. This causes a sound which may sound like a wheeze but actually isn't a wheeze. The symptoms may mimic a severe asthmatic attack but they are usually not life threatening and asthmatic medications do not help relieve the symptoms. Most literature quotes it as a psychological condition and with most psychological conditions the symptoms will be worse if the person is under stress.

The diagnosis for vcd is usually made by putting a special scope down through your nose during an attack to see if your vocal cords are moving in a different way to normal-this can be done by an ENT specialist. Your consultant may refer you to an ENT specialist just to rule this out.

If your symptoms are due to vcd your meds will not help. I cant help you with any possible treatments of vcd as i have no experience of it really was tested as part of difficult asthma protocol in my local costa but it was found its asthma plus what they have labelled as dysfunctional breathing which is supposidly where you panic a bit during an attack which to be honest i think most asthmatics have to a certain extent!

They can i think from my physiology experience diagnose vcd from srirometrey tests. If they have performed a test known as a flow loop test on you they can tell if your symptoms are due to asthma or not. In asthma the amount of air forced out of the lungs in 1 second is reduced this is the fev1 but the exhaled breath is also longer as the air is squeezed out of the restricted airways the inhaled breath is normal and appears curved on the flow loop graph. In vcd the fev1 can be normal or low but the exhaled breath is usually normal and the inhaled breath shows a flattened part of the graph. This is characteristic of vcd and so they would question a diagnosis of asthma on this basis. Its important to note that you could have asthma alongside vcd in some cases and its difficult to assess the severity of the asthma in these cases.

I think i remember reading someones profile once that said they had asthma and vcd hopefully they will post and help you out further. Im sure if any of my information is incorrect someone will correct me hopefully one of the dr bods will be able to advise you further. Hope this helps and feel free to PM me if i can answer any questions i will do my best to answer them take care and try not to worry about anything. If in doubt ask your dr or consultant. Lotsa lv kat Xx

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hi kit kat

thanks for your reply, the reason my consultant thinks I don't have asthma is because my spirometry results were normal, but I suppose if they were normal I probably don't have vcd either!

but I will probably talk things through with my consultant and see what she thinks

hope you're well x

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hi lejaya

Im ok thanks just out of costa so taking things very easily :-). I think the srirometry is normal in vcd unless your actually symptomatic of vcd at the time though im not sure. Speaking to your consultant is a very good idea and if your still on asthma meds do continue to take them until a doctor tells you not to. Hope you have a good and healthy christmas and new year. Lv kat Xx

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hi lejaya

Im ok thanks just out of costa so taking things very easily :-). I think the srirometry is normal in vcd unless your actually symptomatic of vcd at the time though im not sure. Speaking to your consultant is a very good idea and if your still on asthma meds do continue to take them until a doctor tells you not to. Hope you have a good and healthy christmas and new year. Lv kat Xx

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Hi

I have both asthma and vocal cord dysfunction. I spent years being treated for uncontrollable asthma before I received the correct diagnosis. As kit kat said the best diagnosis is made by using a camera to look at the vocal chords during an attack but unless you can induce an attack this is very difficult to time. I was lucky in that I could bring on an attack in any number of ways so when I finally got a decent consultant, I was diagnosed quite quickly.

The usual treatment for vcd is speech therapy. They retrain your vocal chords so that they don't spasm or you are able to control them when they do. The best way to help yourself is to try to work out what triggers your symptoms and try to avoid them or take steps to minimise the impact if you can't avoid them.

Hopefully you will get a definite diagnosis soon but if you want anymore information message me and I will try to help.

Regards

Maxine