I am very concerned. I just got back from my asthma doctor, I have asthma and COPD. I had an acute attack of bronchitis with a very dry hacking cough. It Loosened up a bit today. The doctor insisted on giving me a lung function test. I didn’t really want to take it because I was so congested. He does not have a real professional type machine. You just blow into this tube and Breathe out forcefully like you do in a home test. It’s not like the test where you blow out candles or something like that for quite a few seconds. Anyway I was quite upset because my lung function which was 54% a month ago dropped to fev1 of 39%. He didn’t seem worried, he said to take the prednisone, and stronger dose of omeprazole because I do have reflux which might’ve set the bronchitis off. He also gave me samples of the new drug, Trelegy Ellipta Which is supposed to improve lung function. He seems to think my lung function with approve again after I got better. Though I’m still skeptical about quality of this test.
Can anyone relate to this, could the lung function go down so dramatically in such a short time and then rebound?. I was upset enough but it was 54%. I would dearly appreciate any advice from this fine knowledgeable group
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gemlady12
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With an acute attack of bronchitis, I am not one bit surprised by those results. Your FEV1 should bounce back after you have got over it. I am surprised that the test was done given the circumstances. Do not worry yourself about it, that will only cause your breathing to be even worse. When you are feeling better another test will show your 50%+ once more.
Thanks so much for your encouraging remarks. I really didn’t want to take the test the way I felt. especially that this doctor doesn’t have a “normal” spirometry device. I spoke with my daughter on the phone tonight, she’s an RN who has asthma, and she also wondered why he gave me this test being that my lungs were probably very stressed. Well without trying to be too cynical, I live in the US, and you know our healthcare system is rigged to give the patient less care for more money, mandated by the insurance companies. Maybe the doctor was trying to make a little extra money by putting in the breathing test on his bill.
Of course my daughter and I’m not I guess having to be charged as a nurse, does not give me much comfort as she thinks my worries are stupid, in her words. Sadly, we often have to rely on the kindness of strangers. That’s why it’s so important to have a form like this.
I hope that you are doing well. You seem to have deal with and overcome a lot of struggles yourself. Blessings to you.
You are certainly not stupid to be upset and have worries following this test but your GP most certainly is for making you do it whilst you have an infection.
Common sense tells all of us that the numbers will be down whilst we are fighting something and hospitals insist that we wait six weeks after an infection finishes before giving us the ( much more sophisticated) tests.
Relax, forget about your sensekess and insensitive doctor and concentrate on getting better and being kind to yourself. I’m sure that you will be back to normal soon. x
Thanks for encouragement. Now I can sleep easier knowing I have a wonderful support group. It’s 12:45 where I live in Las Vegas. It’s probably morning in the UK. Enjoy your day!
Hello to you in Las Vegas 💫⭐️✨ I’ve been there a few times and loved it, a total contrast to my quiet life in the countryside. I like living in the country but sometimes it’s nice to do something totally different.
Vegas is like an adult Disneyland. I live in a quieter suburb a good half hour away from the madness. I rarely go to the hotels as you have to walk through the smoky casinos. I just moved here a year ago from a beautiful small mountain city in North Carolina to be near my daughter and grown granddaughter as they were worried about me being so far away, what with getting older and my health problems. It sure is a culture shock. But I’m slowly adjusting. Of course the summers are like being on hell on earth and the very low humidity is difficult to adjust to. What with dried bloody nasal passages and throat and I’m sure my lungs are drying out too. It’s a nice place to visit and then go back home and enjoy the countryside.
Yes it’s a nice place to visit. Even just visiting for a while is a bit of a culture shock! I hope being closer to your family makes it a bit easier to adjust.
It's a sad fact of life that we no longer have the same amount of confidence in the medical professional as we used to have. I'm not sure what the reason for this is, but the effect is that it causes a great deal of worry which can have a much greater effect on your health than the ailment you are complaining about.
Yes, very sad. I don’t know if you live in the UK or the US. But if you have good insurance in the US, which is very costly, some doctors like to capitalize by giving unnecessary testS.
I expect the doctor did the peak flow test as part of his diagnoses. When I have a flare up my peak flow drops from 240 to 200 or less. That's one of the signs I look for to help me decide to start my 'big' antibiotics. (My rescue pack).
When you go to the hospital for a full lung function test it always says on the form to let them know if you have/have had recently a flare up. That's because it will give a temporary worsening of the results.
My FEV is 30.2% normally, I dread to think how low it would be during a flare up.
It was a bare bones version of a spirometry device. Probably could buy it on the internet. It wasn’t even administered correctly. Did it standing up and blew out for one second and that was it.
I was put on prednisone high dose for 5 days, omeprazole plus was given samples of the new inhaler Trelegy Ellipta which I think is called Trimbo in the UK. I haven’t used it yet as I just got it. Was wondering if anybody else out there has tried it. It’s supposed to really help with lung function better than most of the predecessors. I personally know a few people taking it that said they were helped immensely.
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