pressure and tightness in throat

[Sue97]

I have had pressure and tightness in my throat for a few weeks now. It seems to come and go on a daily basis with no rhyme or rythm. It feels like there is a rope around my neck sometimes. I have no pain or any other symptoms. I take 30mg of cymbalta every day. HELP!!

[hhastings5]

If you have vocal cord dysfunction, I would like you to know about my son's cure for it and how doctors should at least give their patients an option in this direction. My son who was 13 at the time could not participate in any sport whatsoever without having an attack. After being misdiagnosed as having asthma, we went to a ENT specialist who correctly diagnosed him, but said he should just resign himself to being inactive. Wow -what a blow! The ENT had him go to a speech therapist to teach him to relax his vocal cords. What a joke!!! What happened next is a miracle. I saw an ad in the paper for a chiropractor who said his work also helped people with asthma or similar simptoms. Hmm, I was desperate. Long story short, an x-ray showed a misallignment in his spine where the nerves go to both his lungs and throat. My son had pinched nerves that led to both his throat and lungs! Then with chiropractic treatment adjusting his spine he saw almost immediate results! It's been almost a year now, and he has not had ANY ATTACKS SINCE! I'm just amazed that no doctor thought to refer us to a chiropractor. Why can't they work together? Amazing. Please let others know about the possibility of pinched nerves causing this condition. It's my duty to tell everyone!

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,

There are many causes for these types of symptoms.Firstly,it can be due to panic attack and might be stress induced. Panic attacks are sudden, discrete periods of intense anxiety, mounting physiological arousal, fear, stomach problems and discomfort that are associated with a variety of somatic and cognitive symptoms.
Treatment includes anti anxiety medicines(available on prescription by a physician).

Secondly,it can be GERD(gastroesophageal reflux disease).Try raising the head end of the bed by 2-3 blocks and take soft,bland diet for a few days.Also take your dinner 2 hrs prior to bedtime.You can also take antacids like Mylanta and prilosec and observe for any change in symptoms.

Other conditions that can cause feeling of choking are laryngo-tracheitis,epiglottitis,tracheo-esophageal fistula,obstructive sleep apnea and Huntigston’s disease.Pls get yourself evaluated by a physician or ENT specialist for these.

Take care and pls do keep us posted on how you are doing.

[KatEyes]

Have you seen an ENT for this? some thoughts that come to mind are enlarged thyroid, GERD, esophageal spasms and vocal cord dysfunction. You will probably need a doc to take a look to  come up with an answer, or maybe a more specific description to an ENT would help narrow it down (the cause, not your throat - sorry!).