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← Return to Bronchiectatis with dry cough
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Thank you! I was not diagnosed for three years because my pulmonologist always asked if I coughed up anything and I said no. It got worse and worse and I finally ended up in ER. I was diagnosed there with a CT scan. The doctor had only ever ordered chest x rays.
I am thinking of talking to an attorney about malpractice because now it is really bad and may not have been if caught earlier. What do you think? I had to leave my job because of gag coughing so much.
Replies to "Thank you! I was not diagnosed for three years because my pulmonologist always asked if I..."
Are you being treated for MAC? I was coughing nonstop for months until I started treatment. I still cough which is considered bronchiectasis cough but I call it normal. When I have a flare up it’s more intense and frequent.
Its not uncommon if you are stable, MAC isnt treated. I was dx 5 years ago and was stable. Then i got pneumonia, was on antibiotics for 10 days and had a CXR which looked good. I kept taking my temp which was low grade 99 but a concern. My pulmonologist wanted to do another CXR but i wanted chest ct which showed another area of congestion. I was admitted for 5 days of IV Zosyn. An infectious disease reviewed my xrays and told me i need MAC tx not antibiotics!
Why didnt radiology pick that up? I toold my doctor i only want chest CT which are more sensitive. I started on MAC tx a month ago
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Welcome to Mayo Connect, and especially to our widely varied group of people living with bronchiectasis.
Even though we have over 1200 members, bronchiectasis is a rare condition, and is very often mis-diagnosed. It affects perhaps 1/2 million people in the US (Compare to asthma 27 mil, COPD 16 mil & emphysema 14 mil.) so even many pulmonologists only see a few cases in their careers. For my primary, I was only her second case in over 25 years, and she had to call the pulmonology department of our large clinical system to find out which doctor I should see (there were only 2 of more than 20 with experience.)
If you do some reading here, you will find that 3 years to diagnosis is not uncommon at all - I was treated for asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, cough, fatigue...for more than 3 years before a very sharp-eyed radiologist recognized signs of both bronchiectasis and MAC on a chest x-ray.
You might want to start here-
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/macntm-is-different-for-everyone-treatment-might-be-different-too/
Did the pulmonologist or the hospital respiratory therapist started you on airway clearance to help manage your condition? This can help manage your cough so you may be able to return to work.
Were you also diagnosed with a lung infection?