Reactive Airway Disease

[deb118]

In May I was hospitalized for a significant case of bacterial pneumonia left lung- I don't smoke and have never had any "lung related issues" (besides the normal colds/ coughs) I'm 52.. I do have an allergy to ragweed from Aug - end of Oct
Since May  i have been using an inhaler PRN when I feel tight/wheezy, I was assuming it was due to the inflammation left over from my bout with pnuemonia
Recently I have had excess mucus/drainage- down the back of my throat and some wheezing
When i went to the doctor -  for my checkup he mentioned Reactive Airway Disease/Asthma.. but he didn't think it had anything to do with the pnuemonia- he actually thought that i had RAD and then got pnuemonia I had contracted in May. Can you get Reactive Airway Disease without some kind of "event" ? Should i go to an allergist or a pulmonary doc?

[peekawho]

How long ago did you have pnuemonia?

Pulmonary problems and asthmatic-type bronchitis can persist for a couple of months after a bad bout of pneumonia.  

[Victoireh]

Asthma presents in many ways. I don't get the huge diurnal swings that most severe asthmatics have, but I do produce an excessive amount of mucous everyday. My asthma is in control for the most part, not many episodes per week of shortness of breath. But I have a chronic cough because every morning i have to clear my lungs of the excess mucous and often later on in the day too. And because I have a huge set of lungs for my body size, wheezing is never heard in my lungs till my peak flows drop 50%. Just these symptoms alone stump family doctors and they tend to think you have some chonic obstructive disease instead.

Also some doctors use RAD interchangeably with asthma, so that just confuses things more. Technically asthma is a form of RAD, because that is what your airways do, react to various triggers.

The most important thing, is to find the right medications at the right dosage that control your symptoms. Then you can live a quality life without feeling tired all the time.

[Tammy2009]

I'm not sure how your doctor can determine you had RAD before the pnuemonia unless he saw you with symptoms before then.  

RAD I believe typically starts after an illness of some sort, whether a cold, flu, or large inhalation of irritants.  

Asthma can start up at any point, and if you are like me it starts quite mildly and slowly becomes worse.  

I would try to get full pulmonary function tests done, maybe even a methacholine challenge test to see if it is full asthma or RAD (although I'm not sure the distinction).  If it is asthma you might need a preventative medicine to help combat the inflammation.  

I did the test, technically not asthma because I didn't improve enough with the brondilators so labelled as RAD.  However I'm on a decent dose of inhaled steroids and all the docs when they look at my chart (I have to go in weekly to get allergy shots) call it asthma, so who knows?