Morning cough ?

[AliW]

Does anyone else suffer with a nusiance cough first thing in the morning - ? Once I have left the house & the cold air get into my lungs I have this annoying cough it has been going on for months.

I have CREST & the raynauds is awful - wherever I am ...any advice would be great

[Anteater]

Yes, I always have an irritating cough. I have spoken to my rheumy about it and apparently you can get this with scleroderma - however, it is worse upon walking up gradients and stairs. I have a lung function test every year and the results always come back ok.

[AliW]

Hi Anteater Thank you for replying - do you have CREST too ? there hs just been such alot of horrid surprises with this stealth disease this winter ! :((( the cough is a nuisance that's all seeing rhemy in May will mention it ! xxx

[Anteater in reply to AliW]

Hi yes, I have CREST but they have changed the name so many times - now I believe it is called systemic scleroderma x

[VanessaJoanne]

If you have a cough you need to check its not being caused by your acid reflux. If it is you need a better or larger dose proton pump inhibitor eg lanzoprazole.

Unchecked acid reflux can lead to cancer.

[AliW]

Hi there - I have Barretts Oesophagus & been prescribed omeprozole - do you think this cough is to do with that ?? got me terrified now saying the 'c' word :(( the cough is when I go outside if I stay indoor there is no cough ....

[BarbJ in reply to AliW]

Hi AliW

I assume that, Barretts you've done everything you can in terms of raising your bed head etc., so I wouldnt have thought it was that. My cough is like yours - on going out in the cold plus on exertion, also hot dry air will set me off (also drys my eyes out so it's a bit of a nuisance on cold frosty mornings - I need the car heater on for my Raynauds but can't stand it for long because of eyes and cough :-))

Antieater, I'm surprised your lung function tests are always normal and that your rheumy just says its part of the diseases. Do you have an echocardiogram and ecg every year?

AliW - if you have got lung involvement I hope that, like me, yours doesn't progress for a long time - if at all. Mine was stable for at least 16 years and I had felt that it was getting worse, and my tiredness too. But we've had no specialist at our local hospital for quite a while and I'd lost faith in the doc who took us 'rare' disease cases on and he didn't seem interested in my 'feeling' of getting worse except (if I remember rightly, to offer me hydroxychloroquine). So, my GP kindly transferred me to Salford - a good way for me to travel, but I've now got one of the best and am so glad I did. They did a baseline x-ray and found another patch on my left lung - which seems as if it's more fibrosis. Am going to my local hospital in March to see respiratory people, suppose they'll do a CT to confirm. I was a bit shocked as I didn't think they would get worse after so many years, but perhaps that's more common than I thought.

Good luck ALiW, I hope your rheumy does send you for at least lung function tests and x-ray if not CT - doesn't he/she do them as routine anyway? And if he/she doesn't offer - if you've the confidence - ask. It's funny in a way - you have Barretts and that's what really scares me!

Warm wishes

BarbJ

[AliW]

Hi BarbJ Thanks for your posting - you say at the end that's what really scares me ! What do you mean ? - AliW

[Yorky]

I cough when my reflux is a problem. I also suffer with breathlessness, but my annual lung function and eeg are normal!

[AliW]

THanks Yorky - my annual checks have also been normal ... will mention to the dr today anyway .... see hat they thhink !