Seretide makes my cough worse…I think! - Asthma Community ...

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Seretide makes my cough worse…I think!

13 Replies

Hello

Pattern forming here but the GP won't take any notice.

I stopped taking Seretide for over a year and felt absolutley fine. I then caught a cold which went to my chest and so I am prescribed antibiotics which help and then I am told to go back on the Seretide. This helps for two weeks and then I start to cough more and get tickle and rough chest and can't clear my throat and can't stop cough. I stop the Seretide and within two days I'm fine again. I don't have wheezing, cough or tickly chest, until I get another cold. Then the whole thing starts again.

The GP will not listen to my explanation and I feel something is not right here. the only thing they say is take higher dose. I try not to self diagnose but the best thing I can do to make me feel better is to stop the Seretide because it making me feel worse. I can't get out of this circle.

Could anyone shed any light on this?

L

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13 Replies

Out of interest, what is your peak flow doing?

My peak flow is fine. Last measure Is in green zone and GP is always surprised how good. I never have wheeze. Just an almighty violent tickle in widpipe and racking cough. As I mentioned, it gets worse with Seretide.

I have been on Seretide since December last year I am still wheezing and coughing I try to come off it to see if it is this that is making me worse but a little scared as after a couple of days I do feel worse and it takes me some time to get better from it, but don't think its that brilliant at easing my symptoms I am 65 and wonder if perhaps I am of an age when things do deteriorate anyway, my peak flow is around 400 at its best

There was a suggestion that I go onto Seretide last year. It had been discovered that I had thrush in my oesophagus ( which was causing all sorts of problems), and the (relatively high) dose of flixotide 250 I was on at the time was blamed for the thrush. As the flixotide has always done a very good job at controlling my asthma ( and also because I had a bad experience after using serevent a few years ago) I refused to switch. It's interesting to hear other people's views on it.

My peak flow is 410 usually, which is on the low end of acceptable for someone of my height apparently (though most of the time I feel fine). None of which helps you out Les. You could ask to see a different doctor I suppose, to get a different opinion.

I f you don't rinse your mouth out after taking Seretide it can make you cough and cause thrush I do it but its a real pain sometimes

The really annoying thing about the thrush in my oesophagus is that I do rinse, gargle and clean teeth thoroughly after taking flixotide, but it makes no difference. Since the initial diagnosis was made the problem has recurred, and more than once. The only solution then is a dose of anti fungal medication. Very frustrating!!

But apart from that Blondee raises an interesting point. Les, do you rinse out/gargle/clean teeth after using your inhaler?

I found that taking seretide as a dry powder inhaler made me cough, the same happened with Symbicort... It turns out that my lungs don't really like dry powder inhalers, and it got to the point that every time I took a DPI I needed to take Ventolin afterwards to stop the coughing... Thankfully my asthma nurse and GP moved my onto Flutiform which is a normal MDI inhaler and I haven't had any side effects from that.

servewithmintsauce profile image
servewithmintsauce in reply to

I found that taking seretide as a dry powder inhaler made me cough, the same happened with Symbicort...

I don't know if you already know this and the decision to move to Flutiform was independent of this but did you know that there is a pMDI form of Seretide called Seretide Evohaler? It sounds like your problem lies not with the medications themselves but with the fact that they are in dry-powder form. Sadly Symbicort only comes as a DPI in the UK but Seretide comes in MDI form. That's what I use and I couldn't have asked for a better medication personally. It's more expensive but just in case you hadn't considered it...

Hi

The amount of Seretide threads is an interesting one, I have been on seretide for about three year until recently.

I was on seretide 500 accuhaler up to 3 puffs twice a day I am under consultants do more than reccommended doses.

This I believe has caused vocal cord dysfunction as I have come off it and gone to flutiform which seems to be working wonders

My chest is feeling a little better each day.

Palette profile image
Palette

Same happens to me, I have been taking Seretide for years, and wanted to stop. Reduced dose and eventually stopped but got chest infection, took for short while but it made symptoms worse. Doctor advised taking it so I dutifully did but it gives me terrible cough and chestiness which stop when I discontinue Seretide. The product maker of the Seretide I get changed 2018, around the same time it started to make my chest worse, not sure if this is relevant.

MikeTr profile image
MikeTr

Hi Everyone. I know this is an old thread but have some feedback to share.

After 2 years I finally got rid of my cough at last!!

I too have had a chronic productive cough for about 2 years. It has been so bad it makes me go dizzy. This happens mainly after eating but also at other times. At times it felt like I had broken my ribs from coughing so hard. Probably 50% of my day was coughing up phlegm, it has actually been a nightmere and I thought it was going to finish me. I expected it to turn into Pneumonia and thought I had probably got COPD like my parents. I got lung x-ray's, blood tests and was prescribed medication for GERD and Nasal Drip. Nothing worked. I was prescribed Montelukast which caused severe tinnitus. My Doc actually gave up on me and told me that what I had was extremely hard to fix. He put me on a years waiting list for an ENT consultation at the hospital. I also gave up dairy, coffee and alcohol trying to find the cause (one at a time).

Well , here it is. After reading Dr Google I found some people asking about coughs and phlegm caused by Seretide Accuhaler so I ask my Doc to switch it out. He put me on to Fostair.

One month later and I am delighted to say that my cough has completely gone. I am no longer eliminating any foods and am absolutely fine. I cant express how pleased I am.

I am no scientist but I suspect the powder in the Accuhaler was irritating my lungs. Maybe the Evohaler would have been ok as it is an aerosol whereas Accuhaler is a Lactose Micro Powder. Fostair is an aerosol of which I am told the particle size is much finer.

Good luck if you have the same problem. This might just help.

Hayman111 profile image
Hayman111

Hey,

I had the same issue with Seretide. Was on Seretide 250 2 puffs twice daily for most of my life. However, in 2018 I started to develop a chronic productive cough. This continued for over a year, until a saw a consultant and they recommend me switching to Fostair. That completley eliminated the chronic productive cough. Interesting that Palette notes above this may be due to manufacturer changing.

Hope you've dealt with the issue.

Aquariel profile image
Aquariel

I have exactly the same but with all inhalers. Over 4 years they've brought me down from mountaineer to not being able t o walk up the road. GPs and consultants ignore me. I'm told its my depressive disorder which I don't have amazingly.Any excuse. They then opt onto the ILO option, in effect throat asthma. This causes a tickly throat and looks like asthma but inhalers don't work on it.Yesterday I tried to get back to swimming and found after a time I could do and lungs felt free. I realised my problem is pollution, it came back as soon as I got outside. I moved from Shetland to Helston 4 years ago. Slow poisoning.I moved to the high street due to age.

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