Has had a cough for 4.5 weeks

[sghv]

Hi all,

I have had a cough for the last 4.5 weeks. I have usually once a year had the same thing but usually it last 2 weeks or so and with the treatment of tussenex it goes away..

well this time i havent had it.. I have had some headache and runny nose but the coughing has gotton bad enough that i got pain in the chest when breathing and would wet myself when i would cough ( which is very embarrassing)

I went to the ER last night and they told me after taking xrays and blood work that it looked like i had a form of asthma that the only symptom is coughing i have never been told in my life that i have it but they said i had some levels of something in my blood that were higher than normal so it indicates that way ..

he gave me an inhaler and some tussenex so i could get some sleep at night..

is this possible to just out of no wehere get asthma?

there have been alot of people sick with coughing problems around me and i have actually gotton people sick around me .

I am just not sure if this is a long cold or if i really might have asthma anyone hear of this

thanks

[National Jewish]

Infections like a cold can cause inflammation of the airways of the lungs.  Usually when this occurs, you may cough when you are active or laugh.  This inflammation can cause wheezing.  After the infection is gone, it is possible for the inflammation to linger.  This inflammation can last for several weeks.  Sometimes this inflammation may linger for 3 to 6 months.  Eventually the inflammation will go away, and then the coughing will stop.  This is called RAD and behaves a lot like asthma.  This inflammation often clears more quickly when it is treated with an inhaled steroid that is used to treat asthma.  Your doctor is the best judge of this.

When this continues, it is generally considered to be asthma.  Testing can be helpful to show if the symptoms are due to asthma or RAD.  Generally testing starts with a simple breathing test called spirometry.  This test provides detailed information about how the lungs are working.  It will show if there is obstruction in the airways.

Some people start to have problems with asthma only after having a severe lung infection or repeated lung infections.  With asthma the basic problem is chronic inflammation along with tightening of the smooth muscles that surround the airways of the lungs.  The symptoms of asthma are chest tightness, coughing, shortness of breath, and wheezing.  Each person with asthma could have only one of these symptoms or a combination of any of these symptoms, including all four of them.  Wheezing is the most common symptom.  However some people only cough.  It was probably eosinophils in your blood that were higher than normal.  This can happen with asthma, but further testing will be needed to know for sure if you truly have asthma.  A pulmonologist would be the type of specialist to determine if you have asthma or some other lung problem and the best treatment.