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Cold producing heavier congestion
I've had a cold now for about a week. Today it seems as if the congestion is getting thicker. My Pulmonologist's office is hard to get through to, so I am considering starting on the antibiotics he gave me to have on-hand when we took a road trip this past fall. Could I do any harm by doing this? I fear letting it go and get worse. Meanwhile, I will still try to contact his office. Any thoughts on this? Thanks for your help! Zayna
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Yes!
It's a frustration of mine as well, how long it takes the pulmonologist to get back to me. Your PCP might be faster, but I was able to go to a walk in clinic and get antibiotics when I was personally confident that the same bacterial infection had returned. I kept getting the same bug 4 times in a row. There are different antibiotics for different bugs, so you might want to get a sputum test if you're not confident to be sure that you get the right antibiotic. I was also able to get a sputum test at the walk-in clinic, but it takes at least 3 days for results. I'm on low dose antibiotics all the time now. The last cold and severe lung congestion I got was from a virus and unfortunately they are not responsive to antibiotics. I definitely suggest taking some action. I suspect my weeks long patience, caused my lungs harm in the mean time.
Thank you for your comments. Helpful to hear various experiences. My pulmonologist did get back to me and said that if I am still experiencing symptoms that seem like things are worse to go ahead and take the antibiotics, but meanwhile, I am not as bad as I was, so probably won't need them. It's just such a fine balance to know when things are really getting seriously worse or will be okay. If only we had immediate access to our specialists! Yes, probably contacting my PCP would be faster. Sometimes anyway. Sometimes not. They mention how I can always go to "Urgent Care," if I can't get in to see them, but in my experience, I might hurry over there but then sit and wait and wait to be seen. Not something I want to do when I am not feeling well, so I avoid that if at all possible.
The sputum test might be a good idea though. I guess it's true that there are a variety of antibiotics. So much to keep in mind. Thanks again! Hope your antibiotics help you feel better quickly.
RE: congestion
I tested positive for Flu A the last week of January. I am a NTM Patient with Mycobacterium abscesses Bronchiectasis at UT East Texas Pulmonary Clinic. It was Dr McShane for the past two years. In May I will be seeing Dr. Megan Devine.
RE: the congestion from FLU A- My PCP advised me to use my Netti Pod 2X daily for the congestion. It worked. It was not associated with the NTM. In the past prior to be diagnosed with NTM (pre: 2013) I used Mucinex recommended by another PCP friend. Good Luck