Cat with Aspiration Pneumonia

I have a 6 year old cat who coughs frequently. He's been seen 3x by the same vet and had 2 cxr's that showed what he called probably aspiration pneumonia in his RML.  He's been on 2 courses of antibiotics, each x30 days.  The order that comes out of his mouth is terrible and it does clear up somewhat after he's been on the antibiotics for about 2 weeks and the cough lessens but never goes away.  When he coughs, he sounds really congested and it's productive in a way that I can see him trying to work it out with his tongue and he swallows alot.  I have tried steam from the shower and putting him in the bathroom and I often do chest PT to stimulate the cough. The vet doesn't want to sedate him to look in his mouth / throat because of his compromised breathing. Do you have any suggestions -

[zodiacqueen]

Hi, I would go to another vet for a second opinion.  I agree with you that your cat needs the bronchoscopy done to see what the deal is with his right lung.  Right middle lobe, right?  Sedation won't be easy on him, but the scope is the only way that you'll get some answers to help your baby.  They will be able to suction that lobe out and/or get a biopsy if they need to.  The scope is your best bet and that's exactly what I would ask for if it were my cat.  You and your baby deserve some answers!!

Take care-I know how stressful this must be for you.  Hang in there!