Chronic Phlegm Collecting in my throat, I constantly have to swallow

Madison, that sounds like what I have. It started over a year ago with a very bad cough which lasted months. I was very hoarse and could barely talk for a week or two. Then the cough subsided and in six months things were better. The said it was probably a bad case of bronchitis. Last fall the sticky throat started and has not gone away. Sometimes worse, sometimes not so bad. I had a referral to an ENT and when I called them and told them all the things I tried, they said no use in going there so they referred me to a throat specialist which was a long way away so I'm still thinking about it. So Deb, when they scoped your throat, what did they find and what did they recommend?

I had sinus/deviated septum surgery in 2014. Ever since then I have suffered with uncontrollable mucus. I am unable to blow my nose to clear my sinuses. I can only hack/cough--very horrible for others around me. I spend 30+ minutes each morning/night trying to clear my head/sinuses so I can sleep. I wake during the night to clear out drainage--poor hubby hears me and kind enough to tolerate it. ENT advises to not use meds that dry the sinuses. I only use saline and occasionally an Alkalol nasal rinse. I am 83. I guess I will live with it until God calls me home! Oh yes. The heavy drainage causes me to go into asthma cough attacks, sometimes pretty bad. I use albuterol and Symbicort but it only helps but not cure. I also strangle on my food, even when taking tiny bites! I chew my food forever, or so it seems, before swallowing! I consider myself a "slow eater."

@leehowder98 I have the same symptoms. If swallowing is affected, why do you think this is an ENT problem and not a GI issue?

@mariego I have seen both specialists--ENT & Gastro. Each blames the other. I had a swallow test and it showed no issues. I had my gallbladder removed--years ago--and tonsils/adenoids as well. Sinus surgery and deviated septum, too. I do have reflux but nothing that requires ongoing meds--did try reflux meds for awhile to see if it helped; it did not. I surrender!

You might consider diet. It could be LPR if your diet is on the acidic side. Dr Jamie Kaufman has a book, Dropping Acid, that explains that LPR can affect the throat and sinuses. I had miserable mucous with throat clearing a cough. It’s gotten so much better by decreasing acidic foods. She also recommends not lying down for 3 hours after meals. It can’t hurt to try dietary changes.

@dungeness, I went through a similar battery of tests last year. The first EGD scope showed esophogitis LA Grade D (the highest - ie, worst -- rating possible) with contact bleeding. I had 4 scopes under anesthesia between April and October 2025. Last scoping showed esophogitis resolved. but aperistalsis persists, as does resultant regurgitation (reflux). I have another EGD scoping scheduled in 2 weeks. My gastroenterologist said that even though I don't feel heartburn, a scoping will show him if there is some damage occuring that I might not be detecting. PPIs at the highest dose did not help the regurgitation. Last June they put me on Voquezna instead, and that seemed to help with the acid refux resulting from constant regurgitation. However, by then I had (and continue to) self eliminated all food except milk, soft cheese, yogurt, dry toast, applesauce, protein powder supplement, so unsure if Voquenza was the cause of relief. Since you asked, I would definitely undergo a scoping under anesthesia if my gastroenterologist recommended it. The risk of anesthesia, to me, does not outweigh the benefit of having my gastroenterologist see first hand the totality of what is going on in my esophagus. I do not want to wind up with Barret's esophagus or worse. Since there seems to be no cure for aperistalsis, diligent monitoring seems to be the best management tool we have. Also, if you don't have a baseline scope to see the condition of your esophagus before you start PPI, how will you know if the PPI made a difference?

@palomin01
The information about the nerve was discussed with me by my Mayo PCP. I am going to use the Mayo portal to send him a message about the nerve and will post it.

He did said I had an overactive nerve there and that was causing the extreme mucus and phelm.

I also see a Mayo ENT and have been told over and over that they suspect I have silent GERD and causes the same type issues in throat. This came from my ENT. I also saw a pulmonologist who also said he suspected silent Gerd.

But if I have silent Gerd and an oversensitive nerve really explains the extreme mucus and phelm build up. And like another poster posted seems to come almost every time I eat but then I will also have the symptoms at other times but not as extreme.

@jc76 Sounds like what I've been going through as well and it mostly occurs in the morning after I eat breakfast. I drink water as often as I can because it helps a bit. But my ENT doc could only say he thought it was GERD but I never get heartburn or any real symptoms that reflect that. I've tried all sorts of things that they prescribed including nasal sprays, etc. and elevating myself while sleeping using a bed made to be able to raise the head and shoulders. Nothing has helped. I had an endoscopy and they could find nothing to explain it either. I first started to experience this back in late 2017 and it gradually got worse. Gargling with wamr salt water only helps to sooth my throat a little. It's perplexing and very frustrating--especially when I was told I just have to live with it. I recall that my late older brother had a similar problem so perhaps there is a chance that it's inherited? I'm currently 73 and he was 15 years older than me. Nobody has every mentioned an overactive nerve causing this.

I've got that.....chronic mucus running down the back of my throat, constantly coughing, clearing my throat....its like the sinuses have lost control and can't stop making this gunk. If I don't cough it up it will end up in my bronchial tubes....im at my whits end....
Taking musinex makes it worse. Using Flonase or nasacort does nothing.
I use a nebulizer with a saline solution.....it helps a bit but causes a coughing fit right after using.... ive been on presidone for a week....and thats done nothing. I believe this is some weird inherited thing as my mom is exactly the same. This sucks and my family is ready to move out from all my noise!!!
I'm also 68....female....did smoke as a young adult....and have always had problems with this since I was a teenager. Getting the Flu or sick was the easy part, it's been horrific getting past the few months afterward. I wish I had a reset sinus button!!