Asthma and Lung Discomfort

[robroy13]

Is it common to experience lung/chest discomfort - mild to moderate burning sensation - with asthma? I was initially diagnosed with asthma about 20 yrs ago, but in 2006 began to need my rescue inhaler more and experienced a burning sensation across my lungs, sometimes at rest but more often after prolonged exertion. I walk 5 flights of stairs 3-4 times a day at work and don't have any problems. It seems the exertion needs to be for at least several minutes. I'll notice it when digging up plants in my garden or sometimes shoveling snow in the winter. The sensation is like when you have a chest cold and you cough, burning like the lungs are irritated. I am currently on Advair 250 and my peak flows rarely fall below 75% of my max, and never near my "red" zone. Still, I get this burning sensation and sometimes just general chest discomfort. I do not usually experience shortness of breath or wheezing at the same time. Sometimes using my rescue inhaler offers relief, sometimes not. I awake at night with this discomfort too. My doctor really doesn't offer an answer when I ask if this discomfort is typical of asthma. I am also taking omeprazole 20mg 2x/day for reflux (have been since around the time I was diagnosed with asthma) so I don't think the discomfort is due to acid. Any insight/advice you can offer will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

[National Jewish Health]

Asthma is mostly associated with tightness of the chest, difficulty taking a truly deep breath, shortness of breath and sometimes, discomfort of the chest verging on pain.  A burning sensation would be most uncommon on the basis of asthma, alone.  Burning can be a symptom of coronary artery disease, but were that the case, it would be most unusual for you to climb 5 flights of stairs several times a day without precipitating the burning.  The most likely cause would be acid reflux.  You note that you are taking omeprazole presumably, regularly, twice a day, but nevertheless, your problem could be reflux.  You should discuss this possibility with your doctor.  Use of a 24 hour esophageal pH probe is a common way to assess for reflux and you would probably want to have it done while on the omeprazole, if you are still experiencing the burning while on that medicine.

The other is that you are experiencing referred pain, referred from or originating in an organ below the diaphragm and most commonly this would be the pain of gall bladder disease.  Finally, from your description, the burning could be due to inflammation or compression of the intercostal nerves or from branches of a bundle of nerves, called the brachial plexus.

Good luck.

[robroy13]

Thank you for your advice. I will follow-up with my doctor. On a related note, is it common to also have almost constant mucous with asthma? I clear my throat several times a day and have a few big hacks to bring up mucous. I've been on Advair for 2 years but it hasn't decreased my mucous production at all. It's not clear but solid yellow (always has been) so maybe I have a constant mild infection?

Thanks again