my son is spitting out blood tinged mucus after clearing throat

[dancerlorri]

My son has been clearing his throat ( its more like what what a person does to bring up mucus to spit) for months now. It started after he had a virus and he has never stopped. He has been getting very bad headaches, so the doctor said he probably has a sinus infection. After almost finishing his antibiotic, he is now "cough up/clearing " blood tinged mucus. Is this normal with a sinus infection? especially after it should be mostly cleared up....Do I need to be concerned??

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the MedHelp forum!
Yes, it is scary to see blood in your child’s phlegm. This can be fresh red if coming from a place above the stomach. It can be brown or coffee colored if coming from the stomach.  This could be due to either a gastric reflux or due to his persistent sinusitis. Both the conditions cause the sensation in throat that makes a person clear his throat again and again. If your son has stomach issues like complaining of pain in stomach on and off or has been on antibiotics then gastric reflux is a possibility. Pyorrhea or pus in gums and Vitamin C deficiency can cause bleeding from mouth, which if ingested can result in throat clearing and spitting blood. Hence a visit to dentist is also important. Please discuss these possibilities with his doctor. It is difficult to diagnose on net.
Hope this helps. Do let me know if there is any thing else and keep me posted. Take care!

[dancerlorri]

Thanks for the response. Actually he is under the care of an ENT- had tubes in both of his ears 2 months ago. I have had him to an eye doctor to rule that out as a cause for the headaches, he has also had an MRI that showed inflamation in his sinuses. We also had a blood work up and his thyroid antibodies are high( We will be seeing a Pediatric Endocronologist in 4 weeks).....That being said, I feel like this is completely unrelated, but the blood ( although very little), is scaring me.  

[mammo]

I would be, I never accept the response "probably."  I would take your son to an ENT for evaluation as to whether this is his sinuses, as this is their specialty. Always better to be safe and get a second opinion.  Take care.