Chronic cough

linamk, Hey there. Are you on blood pressure medicine by chance? It can cause a constant hacking dry cough, especially Lisinopril. Blessings & Prayers....

Hi @linamk, I would like to add my welcome to Connect along with @covidstinks2023 and others. I was wondering if you had seen this research article that mentions coughing and the vagus nerve.
-- Cough as a neurological sign: What a clinician should know
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9136724/
@debkl, @mexikaren, @lmeadows22 and @cbcbasket have mentioned coughing associated with the vagus nerve and may have some information to share with you.

It could be laryngeal hypersensitivity. Gabapentin or an injection into the larynx apparently can be helpful. I do hope you can get some relief!

No I’m only on pantoprazole and hydrochloriqhine recently
No other meds. I’m pretty healthy other than this cough It seems to be triggered by smells and after I eat sometimes
Thank you for your responses

Thank you for the article and I definitely fit in with some of these findings. How do I go about finding the right doctor to help me do the tests needed and not some random tests and meds I don’t need or want?
I live in Massachusetts

Wished I had a better answer for you but if it was me I would try to have an in depth discussion with my doctor and share my concerns, thoughts and any relevant research I have that supports my concerns. I think we all need to be proactive with our doctors for the best possible outcome.

I have a chronic cough - a racking one, worse staring in the afternoon that is often situational, i.e, when I stand from sitting or bend over or swallow liquid... - over a year now and health professionals are from two schools of thought - that's it's GI related reflux etc. and I do have a medium hiatal hernia but have had it all my life and have felt symptoms relating to it are controlled by PPI's. I'm not showing the symptoms of a hiatal or paraesophegeal hernia, i.e. heartburn, regurgiotation, trouble swallowing, chest discomfort. There is one group of doctors who say the cough and belching are gastro related and say hernia repair would be recommended - but the others say nerve related, a neruopathic or nerve related cough or vagus nerve irritation. Especially after I felt I had an injury swallowing something hard right before symptoms of belching and then cough. So I was prescribed Gabipentin which worked at first - which led doctors to suspect nerve related - but the medication has stopped working. I'm trying to figure if this cough is nerve or gastro related - or both. It's diabolical.

davidhowell, Have you had COVID? I have Long COVID and it really ramped up GI issues
and heartburn. I also have a hiatal hernia. I have been on Protonix (Prescription Protein Pump Inhibitor) for reflux for years. None of the others worked. They had to increase it after COVID as my reflux became so painful. I was prescribed Pepcid AC at night too as I had backup reflux in my sleep. If I have breakthrough reflux, I was put on Gaviscon extra strength
(over the counter) before meals. It really helps. It took a few months to calm all of this down, but, it is finally calmed down.

I try and not eat anything after 6 p.m., except and apple or Skinny Pop Popcorn....anything else will flare me up. Also, my bed is elevated and if you have extra weight around the middle
that can cause reflux issues. Eating small meals and not large meals especially at dinner helped mine too. Keep a food log of what foods bother you. I cannot eat raw onions on a hamburger anymore and pineapple can irritate.

Is your cough worse after you eat? Reflux can definitely cause coughing. I might would get a 2nd opinion from another Gastroenterologist.

Personally, I do believe that a Hiatal Hernia can increase reflux pain and symptoms, plus choking on food...just my on opinion.

Praying for you to get answers and relief. Blessings....