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How long to get over chronic (1 month) SOB?
I have mild Be and asthma...and have been for 2 1/2 years nebulising hypertonic saline daily ...large mucus producer. Not many exacerbations and apparently cleared MAC within 6 monthd last year.
I am not usually aware of asthma symptoms and have been for years uncompliant with Symbicort, although I use a salbutamol puffer prior to nebulising.
However I have been suffering terrible SOB for the last month...travelling in.my van. It started in Nth Qld when I was camped near a sugar cane mill burning off at night...and has continued despite my not being near sugar cane. I am now around Noosa and housesitting in an area where there has been much rain and I don't feel comfortable in the house...am sure there is mould...it doesn't get sun on this house. It has been one of the scariest times I have experienced. I had caught telephone appt with my GP who wanted to put me on predisone...I resisted and she gave me a scrip for Symbicort 2x daily for 2 weeks. It seemed to help a little...but I have got worse since being in this house and ended up at the hospital yesterday. I am now on a predisone for 3 days (just taken the second lot). I am continuing with the Symbicort and have been taking up to 6 puffs of Salbuterol at night. I still feel a band around my chest although at hospital my oxygen read 99 and 100 which it rarely does.
I am thinking that it is being exacerbated by anxiety...my primal fear us not being able to breathe...I have had only around 2 hours sleep last 2 nights
..and was desperate enough last night to drag myself to my car to get out if the house in case that is causing more issues. I move from this housesit tomorrow to friends where I am hoping to feel better, but can anyone share hiw long and hiw they hot over this kind of presumably asthma flair. I have never had this happen at home in WA and it only started in Qld.
Feeling very alone and frightened. I have only rare moments when it seems to subside. 🙏
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I am still trying to get my head around the dangers of the different treatments. I will need to pay close attention to the effects too at this point...now that i am becoming aware of the dangers if not treating sufficiently. My mucus production has been going through the roof...and tbh the last couple of days it seems to be much better (now on Symbicort for almost 3 weeks). I may be able to cut it down a little, find a balance if it is effective...I believe Sue does.
Best of luck with the antibiotic. I hope
you can find a good balance with yours.
About 15 years ago a friend suggested my going on a trial of an antibiotic at one of the hospitals...Azrithromyacin. I did the trial, didn't hear anything back...but seem to remember learning that my situation was an eosinophilic reaction. It seems you are saying that indicates allergy? Why can't they just say allergy related!!!
Because there are multiple causes, not just allergies. Elevated eosinophils could indicate allergies, asthma, infection (mostly due to parasites), even cancer. I think my case it was allergies but I did have trace pseudomonas which may go away on its own but taking the 10 days of antibiotic. Years ago, an NJH Pulmonologist put me on Montelukast for elevated leukotrienes and eosinophils. I remember feeling absolutely great on that drug until it started making me nauseated. I was so disappointed that I could not take for my situation-reactive airway mostly triggered by asthma. I recently asked my doctor if I could try it again-a lower dose, but it wasn't recommended while I was fighting MABs.
Just an FYI: You may know this? Taking Azithromycin while infected with an NTM may lead to macrolide resistance and your NTM could be very difficult to treat. People go years with undiagnosed NTMs, take zpaks, and then learn their NTM is macrolide resistant. My MABs is/was macrolide resistant and subsequently has only a 50% rate of culture conversion with antibiotics. I say is/was because I so far have had 2 negative tests and waiting on 3rd. I'm praying for a 3rd negative.
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6 Reactionsoops sorry. I meant to say "reactive airway mostly triggered by allergies" not "asthma".
I'm glad you posted about the nebulizing alone while on watch and wait, and your MAC cleared. I'm hoping the same will happen to me. I was on antibiotics for 3 weeks in May and went to NJH during this time and my NJH Dr. suggested I go off antibiotics and do "watchful wait" due to my low MABs count. My May and June cultures were negative. Still waiting on my July 27th culture which I sent in. So, I'm hoping that's negative as well. Definitely need more studies in regard to nebulizing with 7% saline for those with BE and NTM infections.
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2 ReactionsFingers crossed for the next culture for you. 🤞
I often wondered why they would have done a trial with Azrithromyacin on people with a cough...but it was 15 years ago.
That Azithromycin and cough study piqued my curiosity since my experience has been that docs are VERY reluctant to order antibiotics without positive cultures and I took a look at Pubmed.
There have actually been a lot of studies on the topic. Here's a review one that looked at a lot of them.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38990397/
Thanks for mentioning it and participating. I learned something new.
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5 ReactionsThank you!!