Constant throat clearing

[DL1982]

For several years I have had what I thought was chest/throat congestion, to the extent that I was constantly clearing my throat and coughing.  I just saw one of the best ENTs on the west coast and just from my description of my symptops, he accurately predicted other symptoms and details, as well as what he would see when he looked down my throat.

Turns out, what I have is LPR (laryngopharyngeal) reflux.  It's when your larynx, the opening of which is adjacent to your esophagus, develops a sensitivity to even the small amount of stomach acid that normally refluxes from your esophagus.  (Though it can also be due to abnormally large amounts of reflux, I had no heartburn symptoms so he ruled that out.)  The larynx gets inflamed, and it can feel like you have a lump or excess mucuous in the throat, making you feel the need to cough, clear your throat, or swallow constantly.  Very often, as in my case, it is notably worse after eating.

He prescribed me Prilosec (omerprazole) to take twice daily before eating.  Apparently it can take some days or weeks for the inflammation to go away, and for the damaged cilia in the throat to repair themselves, but if you can keep acid off the throat/larynx for a while, much of the time the condition will permanently resolve.  If you think you have LPR reflux, DON'T JUST LIVE WITH IT!  Not only is it easily treatable, but if it goes untreated and is severe enough for long enough, it can potentially cause throat/esophageal/laryngeal cancer, which is decidedly worse than LPR reflux.


This discussion is related to Throat Clearing.

[asymptomatic]

Thank you for the comments. I too have had this constant need to clear my throat- but no mucus comes up.  nothing to clear out. also very distorted voice. ( It has been difficult at work because the sound of my throat clearing is terrible!) Endoscopy didn't show reflux damage. I have been on Nexium for many years for reflux- maybe I need a different med? I also recently was diagnosed with an asymptomatic asthma- i.e. i never wheeze or cough and rarely get an "attack"  i just get lower and lower energy and fatigued.  (I did fail the methylchloride test so it was asthma). I also looked up VCD Vocal Chord Disorder to see if the two connect, but it appears to create "attacks". My  doctors don't quite know what to do.  So I guess I will check with an ENT.  

[anthony408]

Thank you for this post it really help