Bronchiectasis

[trampoline123]

Hello - anyone here have Bronchiectasis? I've just been diagnosed after a year or so of on going cough and breathing problems.

I've seen a physio and have been doing the exercises for roughly a week and a half but am still not feeling much relief. I'm still coughing up so much crap but not sure if it's all old stuff that needs to be cleared or new, surely you can't produce that much new mucus?!

Just wondering how long it took other people to clear the phlegm that had accumulated until you were diagnosed.

Hi, How are you now?
I was diagnosed with bronchiectasis 2 years ago, but the consultant explained I had probably always (since a baby) had it and it was confused with asthma.
Antibiotics are what has made the different in reducing the mucus.
I think I also have asthma but bronchiectasis is the underlying cause.
I still get a lot of pleuritic pain and perhaps clearing much more thoroughly will help with that.
I guess the take away us that it is a chronic condition and your aim is to stop it getting worse. It won't get a lot better.

I’ve been recently diagnosed. I’m not aware of having much mucous, I don’t cough much, I bring up a small mucous ball some days (green brown colour). I’ve got an ache in my upper back. I don’t know if it’s coming from my lungs, my chest physio said she thought not as it’s high up, but I wonder if it’s the pleuratic pain that you talk about. Is your mucous clear or coloured? I took a sputum sample in 10 days ago, I haven’t had the result yet. I don’t know if my doctor will suggest an antibiotic and whether that would be good for me. I’ve been bringing up small balls of green phlegm for years.

My DF had bronchiectasis. He had TB as a child. The phlegm was continually produced. He was taught postural drainage (chest physio) which he did most days and had saline nebulisers to help loosen secretions. Was often on antibiotics for chest infections.
He sadly deteriorated over the years and struggled increasingly with shortness of breath, dying at 54 of heart failure.
It's a horrible disease.

Hello my DH got diagnosed with this in 2021. He seems to have a regular ‘clearing’ cough. Was on antibiotics about 6 months ago for a bacteria that just wouldn’t shift. He needs to exercise 3 times a week and really get his heart rate up so he can cough it out.

I do worry about him as he’s regularly got a cough and does seem to spit up phlegm. @Sunnnybunny72 so sorry to hear about your father.

Hello all. Thank you for your messages.

Sorry to hear about your father @Sunnnybunny72

I ended up in hospital after this post with pneumonia and after a weeks stay on multiple devices and IV antibiotics I started feeling much better.

But the past month or so the cough is got worse, keeping me up all night. I'm barely sleeping and just so exhausted. I have just finished a 2 week course of antibiotics and steroids and it's not helped.

I've slack with my chest physicians need to start making that a priority again. It's not easy fitting it in around work and the kids but I must.

@trampoline123 Are you seeing a respiratory consultant for your bronchiectasis? If you can get a referral they should give you a nebuliser to use with hypertonic saline. It really helps to clear the mucus, which in turn reduces the chances of infection.